


Counterpoint

by CaitlinRose94



Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Clexa, F/F, F/M, Linctavia - Freeform, braven
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-03-23
Updated: 2016-05-30
Packaged: 2018-03-19 06:19:20
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 25,419
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3599526
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CaitlinRose94/pseuds/CaitlinRose94
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Soccer AU!</p><p>Clarke is the captain of the Philadelphia Arkers. Lexa is the captain of the Washington Grounders.</p><p>The story where everyone is a lovestruck idiot, and everyone takes soccer just a little too seriously.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Rivals

Dew is still clinging to the grass when the Philadelphia Arkers trudge on to the field. Nobody is happy about the new training schedule, but Clarke is determined to stick to it. After all, since making captain, she _has_ lead them in an almost undefeated season. Her mother (and also their coach) finds the early starts a little too draining, which is just another reason to keep them up. Less time with her mother equals less time pulling her hair out. She still has to see her for their afternoon training sessions on Wednesdays, but Monday mornings belong to her now.

‘Hey, Griffin, I’m freezing my damn ass off over here.’ The others all have tracksuits on, but Raven is shivering in a pair of black shorts. ‘Can we kick this off or what?’

‘We’re just waiting on Monty,’ she replies.

Bellamy snorts. ‘We don’t need to tape every moment of the training sessions.’

‘You’re right.’ Clarke turns to look at him with a shit-eating grin plastered on her face. ‘We don’t need to film the warm-ups. Take a lap.’

He glances at the other teammates for help, but everyone is suddenly terribly interested in staring at the grass. He sighs. ‘Come on guys, let’s take the lap.’

‘Not them, Bellamy, just you.’

‘That’s not fair!’

She grins. ‘Make it two.’

He mumbles something under his breath before taking off. Clarke can’t help but smirk; she loves bossing him around like this. Once he’s on the opposite side of the field, she instructs the others to follow him.

Jasper sticks his hand up in the air. ‘Do I really have to run the lap though? The goalie shouldn’t have to run laps.’

‘Move it, Goggles.’

He groans before heading after the others at an impossibly slow pace. Clarke is performing her own stretches when Monty finally shows up. A flurry of apologies fly out of his mouth before he even reaches her. 

‘It’s okay, Monty. We’re just warming up right now anyway. Cute outfit by the way.’

Monty grins and leans back on the railing that surrounds the field. He’s wearing a green onesie and at least three sweaters. It’s not even that cold. He’s such a baby. Once the team returns from their jog, he pulls out the camcorder. ‘Ready when you are, cap’n.’

Clarke suggests that they practice running the play Raven came up with last week. They’re just starting to get in to it when she realises someone is sitting up in the stands.

‘Raven, you’re in charge of the play, I’ll be right back.’ She sees Bellamy grimace out of the corner of her eye before she walks away. A smile pulls at her lips; she knows how much he hates it when Raven starts giving him orders.

The person doesn’t attempt to move away as Clarke approaches them. It doesn’t take long for her to realise it’s a girl, even through the sunglasses and the pulled-down baseball cap.

‘Can I help you?’ She asks before she’s fully up the stairs.

The girl turns to face her, but doesn’t remove her sunglasses. ‘Just out for a morning stroll,’ she says, ‘there’s no rule that says I can’t sit here and watch you practice.’

Clarke frowns as she finally reaches the girl’s level. Why did she sit so far back in the stands? At least she can count this as part of her warm-up.

‘I’m not telling you that you can’t sit here, I’m just asking why you’re here.’

‘You didn’t ask that, actually.’

Clarke balls her hands in to fists. This might be the most literal person she’s ever met.

‘Well, I’m asking you now.’

‘I already told you. I was out for a stroll.’

‘At five-thirty in the morning?’

‘Yes.’

This is definitely the shortest amount of time it’s ever taken Clarke to hate someone. She’s not even sure why she’s so annoyed, there’s just something about this girl’s terseness that rubs her the wrong way.

‘Are you a student here?’

The girl doesn’t answer. She just stares down at the field. Clarke is about to berate her when she runs her hand through her hair, causing the blanket she has over herself to slip off.

That’s when Clarke sees the tattoo on her arm. She’d recognise that tattoo anywhere. It was plastered all over the Washington Grounders’ Facebook page. This was a rival team’s captain, Lexa. Sitting in the stands. Learning about their plays.

‘Get out,’ Clarke says through gritted teeth.

Her expression remains stony as ever. ‘It’s a free country.’

‘Get the fuck off of my field and get the fuck out of my school.’

Lexa finally takes her sunglasses off and places them on the chair to her right. ‘I must admit, I find myself a little disappointed. Considering your reputation, I was expecting something much more impressive.’

Clarke glances down at the field in time to see a soccer ball hit Bellamy in the back of the head. She can hear Raven’s laughter echoing across the stadium.

‘I’m sorry, maybe you didn’t hear me the first time, but I distinctly told you to _get the fuck out of here._ ’

Lexa folds up her blanket and rises from the chair. ‘I’ll see you on the field next week, _captain._ ’ She annunciates the last word with a shoulder barge.

Clarke shoves Lexa back, daring her to touch her again.

And she does. This time a lot harder, and Clarke almost goes reeling. A loud ‘HEY!’ rings out, and it only takes a moment for Raven to climb the stairs and grab Lexa by the throat.

‘No, Raven!’ She grabs her arm and pulls her back. ‘I’m okay, just let it go.’

Lexa is rubbing her neck, but she doesn’t look at all perplexed by what’s just happened. ‘Maybe you should add some weight training, Clarke. That was a pretty weak grip.’

Raven opens her mouth, but before she gets the chance to say anything, Clarke is already moving. She throws the first punch and catches Lexa in the jaw. Then Lexa throws the second punch. And the third punch. It’s two seconds away from turning in to an honest to god brawl before Bellamy appears to wrench them apart.

‘Are you an idiot, Clarke?’ He spits. ‘All Dean Kane needs is one reason to shut this team down. If he caught you doing something like this, we’d all be screwed!’

Clarke isn’t even listening. Lexa has already turned on her heel and is heading back down to the field.

‘You’d better watch your back,’ Clarke calls after her, ‘cause next week I’m coming for you!’

‘I’ll hold my breath.’ She calls back without even looking over her shoulder.

Bellamy tries to lay a hand on her arm but Clarke bats it away. ‘Let’s just get back to training.’

/

Octavia looks down at the single packed bag in front of her. She never realised how little she owned until it all fit in to this tiny suitcase. Her mother is downstairs in the kitchen waiting for her. It’s almost like she can’t wait for her to leave – which is probably true.

She’d let her grades slip and lost the scholarship to her own university, so now she has to attend her brother’s.

And she’s excited to see him again, but it’s been almost two years since they’ve talked for longer than a fifteen-minute phone call. She loves him, but it’s not making this move any easier.

‘Come on Octavia, let’s go!’ Her mother’s voice rings out.

Starting at a new college isn’t ideal, but starting at a new college halfway through the semester is even worse. Everybody will have already settled in to their classes and formed their friendship groups. She’ll be the weird kid all over again, just like high school.

The weird home schooled kid with no friends.

Not much has changed since high school, really. She still doesn’t have any friends. And she’s still weird.

‘Octavia, now! I’m not shelling out this much money for you to be late.’

And there it is. The guilt trip.

Bellamy was granted his own scholarship based on how great of a soccer player he is. Which is damn lucky, because her mother can only afford to send one child off to college, and if it had come down to the two of them, she’d still be learning numbers in their garage.

She’d always felt like the _second child._ Like an unwanted burden on her mother’s life.

She never felt that way with Bellamy. He loved her. He might be the only person on this earth that’s ever loved her.

Octavia takes one last look around at her childhood bedroom. It’s extremely cramped, more of an attic than anything else. Which she feels is an appropriate place for her mother to have shoved her. She’s practically been collecting dust.

She picks up her suitcase and heads down the stairs. Her mother glances up at her from the magazine she was just reading. ‘Is that all you’re bringing?’

‘It’s all I have.’

Her mother groans. ‘Don’t be so dramatic, Octavia.’

She bites her tongue before her thoughts can find their way out of her mouth. There’s no use in arguing with her mother. It will only get her in to trouble.

She’s dropped off at the bus depot without so much as a kiss on the cheek, but her mother calls out, ‘Say hello to your brother for me’ before driving away.

This day isn’t off to a good start.

/

Bellamy sinks back in to his chair and cracks open another beer. Raven is already on her second.

‘I love her,’ Raven says as she taps furiously on the Xbox controller, ‘but sometimes Clarke is too hot-headed.’

‘Sometimes?’ Bellamy asks while he shoves a handful of corn chips in to his mouth. ‘She’d knock a kid out just for stepping on her toes.’

Raven laughs suddenly and it makes Bellamy jolt.

‘What?’ He asks.

‘Oh, nothing,’ she kills him and he groans while he waits to respawn, ‘I was just thinking. Remember that time she thought Wells dobbed her in for keeping spirits hidden in her room? And it turned out to be her mom?’

Bellamy barks out a laugh. ‘Man, I think I saw actual steam come out of her ears that day.’

They both laugh, but it quickly divulges in to a solemn silence. Wells died last year in a ‘mugging gone wrong’. Some kid ended up panicking and shot him in the chest. On top of Finn moving halfway across the world and her father dying, Bellamy doesn’t think Clarke can handle any more loss in her life. 

He downs the last of his can, crushes it, and throws it on top of the growing pile of litter collecting in his room. The light from his fridge spills over him as he opens it up, illuminating the scowl on his face. He hears the sound of his last beer being cracked open behind him.

‘You are unbelievable, did you know that?’

‘Not the first time a guy has said that to me.’ She takes an exaggerated sip.

‘Why do I keep inviting you over here? You just eat all my food and drink all my booze.’

‘Because you crave the attention of a human female.’ She throws her thumb over her shoulder and gestures towards his bed. ‘Has it been a while, Cassanova?’

‘You’re one to talk. When’s the last time you spent a Friday night anywhere but here?’ He plops himself back down beside her and picks up the controller.

Raven laughs. ‘Firstly, you just outed yourself as a loser, because when _I’m_ here on a Friday night, _you’re_ here on a Friday night. Secondly, when’s the last time you saw me arrive to class on time?’ She takes another sip of her beer. ‘I’m not braiding my hair in the mornings, I can tell you that.’

A blush is creeping in to his cheeks, but he shakes it off. Blushing always makes his freckles stand out more, and Raven loves to tease him about them.

‘I can’t go out on Friday nights any more. Not since Kane took over. He’ll take any excuse he can get to kick me out of here.’

When Bellamy was awarded his scholarship two years ago, Dean Jaha (who was also Wells’ father) was running the college. He retired after Wells’ death, and Dean Kane took over. And he really didn’t like Bellamy. The feeling is mutual.

‘All I’m hearing is excuses.’ She kills him. Again.

He throws the controller down. ‘This game is rigged.’

‘No it’s not, you’re just a sore loser.’ She pokes her tongue out at him. Bellamy is about ready to rip it out when there’s a knock at his door.

They glance at each other. He climbs out of his deflated beanbag chair to answer it. The door swings open to reveal his younger sister. 

Without speaking, he wraps Octavia up in his arms. He wasn’t expecting her until tomorrow, and if he’s being honest with himself, he was a little nervous about seeing her again.

But with his little sister’s arms around his neck, it feels like they’re kids all over again.

‘So are you gonna introduce me or am I just gonna sit here awkwardly while you two hug it out?’

They break apart and Octavia glances over his shoulder. ‘Ah, this must be the famous Raven Reyes.’

His eyes practically pop out of his skull.

‘Oh!’ Raven sounds so gleeful it hurts. ‘I’m famous, am I? Been telling little sis all about me, huh? Do you talk about me, Bellamy Blake?’

He spins around to face her. ‘I don’t think talk is the right word for it. I’d say ‘complain’ fits a little better.’

‘Either way, you’re talking about me.’

‘Ahem.’ He turns back to Octavia. ‘If I can just interrupt this little flirting session for a second, I’d like my big brother to show me where the hell my room is?’

He laughs and wraps an arm around her shoulder.

‘That’s my cue.’ Raven puts down her controller and slowly hoists herself up on to her crutches. She takes the brace off when she comes over here.

Bellamy rushes over to help her but she shrugs him off. ‘I can walk on my own, Freckles.’ She brushes past him and extends a hand to Octavia. ‘Nice to finally meet you. This big teddy bear never shuts up about you.’

Octavia laughs. ‘I could say the same thing to you.’

Raven raises an eyebrow at Bellamy before disappearing out of the door.

Bellamy groans. ‘O, you know I love you, but god damn it, do you have to open your big mouth like that?’

‘What? I didn’t say anything incriminating.’

‘There’s nothing to incriminate.’ Even he can tell that came out too defensive. ‘Come on, let’s go figure out where you’re sleeping for the next year.’

He closes the door behind them and they head down the hall. Once they’re out of the building, he takes his jacket off to wrap it around her shoulders. ‘I’m really happy you’re here.’

She smiles, but it’s half-hearted. Bellamy’s stomach sinks.

‘Hey,’ he says as he wraps an arm around her, ‘you’re gonna love it here. You won’t be able to count your friends by the end of the week.’

‘Sure. Whatever you say.’

He wants more than anything to see Octavia happy, and decides if some new friends can’t do it, he’ll just have to do it himself.

His sister. His responsibility.

/

Lexa storms in to her dorm room and slams the door behind her. Her roommate (and best friend of the last 20 years) looks up from her textbook with a raised eyebrow.

‘What could have possibly happened that would result in you exhibiting some form of emotion?’

Lexa glares at her. Anya shrugs.

She pours herself a glass of water and takes a few calming sips before speaking.

‘You know how I went to Philadelphia today?’

‘Yes.’

‘To check out the Arkers?’

‘Yes.’

‘Because we’ll be playing them next week?’

 _‘Yes_ Lexa, get on with it.’

She takes another sip. ‘Right, well, I ended up accidentally running in to their captain. And she was kind enough to give me this.’ Lexa turns her head to reveal the purple bruise forming on the bottom of her jaw.

‘You got her back, I assume?’

‘Twice. But she got me first.’

Anya laughs. ‘She fought well. Sounds like my kind of girl. And yours, Lexa.’

Lexa gives her the emptiest stare she can muster (which really isn’t that different from how she usually looks) and shakes her head. ‘Don’t be stupid, Anya.’

Anya shrugs and looks back down at her textbook. Lexa takes another sip of her drink. She doesn’t have time for hot-headed girls. She takes her captaincy extremely seriously and she can’t allow her grade average to slip if she wants her estranged father to continue paying for her tuition.

It was an odd offer, and under any other circumstances she wouldn’t have taken it, but his contribution allows her to spend her spare time playing soccer rather than working at some dingy bar to try and pay for her classes. She supposes she should feel gratitude, but she feels nothing.

Anya is clicking her tongue. It’s something she’s always done when she reads. It snaps Lexa back to attention.

She hadn’t intended to butt heads with the opposing team’s captain, and when Clarke had approached her, she’d had no intention of saying anything. But there was something about that girl that just brought it out of her. She shakes her head.

‘She’s officially my nemesis, Anya. Jus drein jus daun.’

Anya snorts. ‘Don’t echo back that old Grounders motto at me. It’s entirely too dramatic for a soccer team to be chanting on the field.’

There’s a knock at the door. They both glance up, but Lexa moves first to answer it. It’s her soccer coach.

‘Indra, is everything alright? Is someone injured?’

‘This isn’t about soccer, Lexa.’ She pauses. ‘Well actually, it is. Come with me. The Dean would like to see you.’

She turns and walks away, and after glancing back at Anya once, Lexa obediently follows her.

/

Clarke shifts uncomfortably in her chair. It feels overly stiff and it’s making her nervous; probably an atmosphere that Dean Kane tried to create on purpose.

Her mother showed up at her dorm room twenty minutes ago and dragged her up here. Thankfully, she didn’t stick around. She can’t bear her mother and Kane in the same room.

She’s sitting silently for eleven minutes before he finally enters the room and takes the seat opposite her.

‘Miss Griffin,’ he says, and Clarke bristles at the sound of his voice, ‘it has just come to my attention that you were involved in a rather embarrassing incident on the soccer field this morning.’

She sits up a little straighter. She refuses to look intimidated.

‘I believe it involved the captain from the Washington soccer team?’

When it becomes evident that he isn’t going to continue, Clarke speaks. ‘Yes.’

‘Right.’ He claps his hands together. ‘As you know, I do not tolerate insubordinate behaviour. I cannot let this act go unpunished. I run a tight ship, Miss Griffin, that’s just the kind of guy I am.’

Clarke doesn’t really give a shit about what kind of guy he is.

‘So I’m afraid I’ll have to ban you from competing in next week’s game.’

She stands up suddenly, and the force of it sends the chair reeling back. ‘You can’t do that.’

He raises an eyebrow. She stands her ground.

‘I can. On top of this ban, you are also forbidden from attending any training sessions until next week’s match is over.’

She slams her hands down on to his desk. Now Kane is on his feet and Clarke is starting to think she should have controlled her temper.

‘Take a seat. Now.’

Reluctantly, she pulls her chair back and sits. Kane does the same.

‘Now, I’m not a cruel man, Miss Griffin. If you’d like to observe the game as a spectator, I would be more than happy to oblige.’

Clarke doesn’t speak. She’s waiting for the catch.

‘On one condition.’ And here it is. ‘You must apologise to Miss Heda and shake her hand.’

Lexa Heda. A simple name for a simple girl.

‘You must also sit with her at the game and learn to cheer for your opposing teams in good spirits.’

Suddenly Clarke forgets that she’s mad. ‘Sit with her? Will she not be competing?’

‘Miss Heda is also banned from next week’s match. If either of you hope to observe the game, you both have to agree to these conditions.’

Clarke slumps back in her chair and folds her arms across her chest. ‘I agree,’ she mumbles.

‘What was that?’ Kane leans forward in his chair.

It takes all her will power to not leap across the desk and throttle him. ‘I agree.’

‘Atta girl.’ This makes her cringe more than anything. ‘Alright, back to your dorm room. I’m sure you’ve got study to catch up on.’

She walks back out of his office with her tail between her legs. How utterly humiliating. And not just because she agreed to Kane’s conditions, but because they both know the only reason she isn’t banned for the season is because Kane and her mother are involved.

But she can’t get special treatment while Lexa gets hung out to dry, so they’ve both been dealt the same punishment. 

Lexa owes her.

She’ll be expecting an apology in the mail any day now.

Raven is sitting in the corner and tinkering with her leg brace when she walks back in to the room.

‘Have a nice chat with mommy?’ She asks without taking her eyes off her work. Clarke’s sigh is enough to get Raven to lower the brace. ‘What happened?’

‘Kane heard about this morning. I’m banned from next week’s match. And all training sessions until after the game.’

The brace clutters against the floorboards. ‘You’re fucking kidding. Tell me you’re kidding.’

Clarke frowns and shrugs. Raven is grabbing her crutches. ‘Is he still in his office? I’m gonna shove this crutch all the way up his ass.’

She can’t help but crack a smile. ‘Don’t worry about it. It’s done. Could have been a lot worse.’

Raven settles back in to her chair. ‘Do you at least get to watch?’

‘Yeah, sure!’ Clarke’s voice is dripping with sarcasm. ‘I get to _spectate_. In the stands. But only after I kiss and make up with Lexa. And spend the entire game sitting next to her.’

She raises an eyebrow. ‘Can you handle that?’

Clarke shrugs. ‘I guess I have to.’

Raven hops in to her bed and lays back. ‘Well, I think it’s a load of shit.’

Clarke moves to sit on her own bed. ‘You’re not the only one.’

‘And I’d love to stay up and discuss how shit it is with you, but some of us were running laps at five-thirty this morning and we need to sleep now.’

She rolls over and faces the opposite wall. Clarke gets up to switch off the light, kicks her jeans off, and crawls in to bed.

She lies on her back and stares up at the ceiling. Ninety minutes with Lexa. He couldn’t have thought of a worse punishment if he’d wanted to.

She is not looking forward to next week.


	2. Truce

Octavia is observing them from the sideline. Bellamy can see her through the window of their club’s house, but they don’t acknowledge each other. He knows when she wants to be left alone.

‘No,’ Raven says as she tosses his piece of paper away, ‘that wouldn’t work because the Grounders’ fullbacks are probably three feet wide and weigh two million fucking pounds!’

Bellamy runs his hand over his face. ‘Well I guess that would make them pretty _slow_ then, which would give Miller enough time to make the pass.’

She throws her hands up in to the air and groans. ‘Take your head out of your ass, Blake. Everybody knows that the Grounders have the fastest defenders out of every team competing this season.’

‘And we’ve got the best strategists!’

‘We’ve got _a_ strategist, and _she_ can only implement her strategies when certain players -’ she feigns coughing, ‘Bellamy Blake - _allow_ her to control the plays.’

‘Hey!’ Monty’s got his hands up now. ‘I thought you and I were the team’s strategists.’

Raven shakes her head but he can see the smile pulling at her lips. ‘Sure, Monty, you’re the co-captain on Team Strategy.’ She gestures towards Bellamy, ‘Would someone tell Team Strategy’s janitor to go and clean the toilets?’

‘What the fuck, Reyes?’

‘What? I just figured you’d be comfortable around shit since you spend so much time talking it.’

Bellamy drags his hands along the table and sends all of their drawings flying across the room.

‘Good one, dickhead.’ Raven bends down to scrape them up but grabs her leg and hisses.

Now Bellamy feels bad. Reluctantly, he dips down and starts picking all of them up.

‘Come on guys,’ Miller decides to finally weigh in, ‘we need to work as a team if we’re going to win tonight.’

‘What we need,’ Bellamy says as he slams down a few crumpled pieces of paper, ‘is our captain back.’

‘Well that’s not gonna happen because she went and got herself banned.’ Jasper tosses a peanut up in to the air and catches it in his mouth. ‘And I kind of wouldn’t mind a break from Clarke, she’s been training us too hard.’ He tosses another peanut up but Raven snatches it out of the air.

‘The only reason we’ve been winning is _because_ Clarke is training us so hard.’ She crushes the peanut in her hand and throws it at him. ‘You think you’ve got it tough? Let’s swap.’

He brushes the peanut fragments off of his shirt. ‘What do you mean?’

‘I said let’s swap.’ She snatches the goggles off of his head. ‘I’ll stand between the goal posts and scratch my balls for ninety minutes while you run all over the field with a titanium brace strapped to your leg.’

Jasper swallows. Bellamy can see the shame colouring his face. Raven looks back over her shoulder at him and he shakes his head. She drops the goggles on to Jasper’s lap and walks away from him.

‘Come on guys,’ Monty connects the camera to the small television in the corner, ‘Clarke is relying on us to be able to do this without her.’

Bellamy sighs. When Clarke had first been picked as the new team captain, he’d fought against it. He figured that the only reason she made it was because her mom was the coach. But it’s moments like this when he sees how lost they all are without her.

He takes a seat next to Raven, leans back, and rubs his eyes. He’s watching himself run across the field to intercept a pass from the opposition. He dribbles the ball past several defenders but doesn’t make the goal.

Monty hits the pause button and rubs his hands on his knees. ‘Right. Who can tell me what went wrong here?’

Bellamy frowns. He’s never been great at handling criticism, even when it’s meant to be constructive.

‘What went wrong is that he didn’t pass the damn ball to me.’ Raven rocks back on her chair. ‘I would have made that goal.’

‘You’re all talk, Reyes.’

‘She’s right.’ Monty doesn’t falter beneath the look Bellamy gives him. ‘You were so determined to be the guy who scores that you didn’t even look around once at your teammates.’

Bellamy snorts. Monty rewinds the footage and plays it back again. He leans in and squints at himself.

Damn. He had his head down the whole time.

‘It’s okay, Bellamy,’ Harper steps away from the wall she was leaning against, ‘nobody’s expecting you to carry this team. You just gotta remember that we’re there for you on the field.’

That tugs at an uncomfortable part of his chest. He glances back out of the window. Octavia is gone.

Raven lays a gentle hand on his arm and he looks over to meet her eyes. ‘Look, Clarke trusts you. We trust you.’ She bites her lip. ‘I trust you. Just remember to trust us, okay? Sometimes you get so caught up in that head of yours you forget that we’re with you. Just look up next time. I’ll be there.’

His hand moves to rest on top of hers and there’s a brief moment of shared silence until the loud scrape of Monty’s chair breaks it. Her hand flits away and she moves to lean against the wall.

It’s not that he doesn’t trust them. He just doesn’t want to let them down. Doesn’t want to make a wrong pass. Doesn’t want to cost them the game. For most of them this team is all they have, and if he doesn’t pull his weight, Kane will shut them down. He doesn’t trust himself to not screw it up for everyone.

The sooner Clarke is back, the better.

/

Clarke pulls her sky blue Arkers jersey on and slips her favourite beat up bomber jacket over the top. She stands by the window and watches the crowd of students assemble towards the stadium.

The game doesn’t kick off for another half hour but she’s itching to get down there. She’s only ever missed one game in the last two years, and that’s because she’d broken her wrist doing a drunken-handstand the night before. Her mother had refused to drive her to watch that game, so she’d walked four miles from the hospital. She still remembers the looks on their faces when she’d started cheering for them from the sideline.

Man, this sucks.

She wonders if Lexa is already down there. Clarke assumes that she has also agreed to sit together because Kane hasn’t told her that she can’t attend the match.

Raven left a while ago for the pre-game warm up. Watching her walk down to the stadium alone had been like a punch to the chest.

Alright, she can’t take this anymore.

She tosses her textbook on Anthropological and Forensic Anatomy to the floor and pulls on a pair of worn black boots. They were a present from her father, and even though she is definitely due for a new pair, she won’t throw them out.

The walk down to the stadium is unpleasant. Every now and then a student will pass her and offer up a confused look, followed by _‘Why aren’t you already down on the field Clarke?’_

She thinks her mood can’t get any worse until she rounds the corner and sees Lexa sitting alone in the back row sporting a dark green Grounders jersey. Kane is about five rows ahead of her, and he immediately makes eye contact. The slight jerk of his head implies that she has to go and sit beside her immediately.

The players aren’t out on the field yet, so Clarke grudgingly climbs the stairs. She spots her mother on the sideline but avoids making eye contact. Lexa doesn’t acknowledge her when she sits down, leaving a few chairs between them.

‘Miss Griffin.’ Kane calls out to her. When she looks down at him he shakes his head and motions for her to move over. She groans and shuffles closer to her.

Lexa stares straight ahead with her hands folded neatly in her lap. Clarke leans back and puts her feet up on the chairs in front of them. Lexa’s eyes flick down to look at them before returning to the field.

Ah, this must be bothering her.

Clarke lets out an animated yawn and starts bopping her shoe. She sees Lexa tense in her periphery, and decides to stretch her right leg over so that it’s sitting on the chair directly in front of her.

Lexa closes her eyes for a few seconds and then snaps them open again. She’s still staring straight ahead.

Slowly, Clarke brings her other leg over and raises her knees so she can no longer see the field. Lexa’s hand shoots out and knocks her off the chair.

‘Hey!’ Clarke exclaims. ‘I thought we were supposed to be calling a truce here?’

‘Keep your lanky legs out of my face and we won’t have a problem.’

‘Excuse me?’ She runs a hand down her leg. ‘I am a muscular goddess.’

‘You’re weak.’

Clarke raises an eyebrow and nods her head. ‘That bruise on your face says otherwise.’

Lexa clicks her tongue and her jaw twitches. Clarke can’t help but smirk. It’s been five days since their little punch-up, but the mark from her fist hasn’t entirely faded yet. She’ll never admit that she put concealer on this morning to hide the bruise that’s still lingering above her cheekbone.

Finally, the teams begin filing out on to the field, and they both stand at the same time.

The crowd erupts in to cheers and Clarke cups her hands over her mouth in an attempt to be heard over them, ‘KICK THEIR ASSES.’ 

She can feel Kane’s eyes on her but she doesn’t bother to look down. There’s nothing wrong with a little healthy competitiveness.

Raven has looked up and is waving. Lexa crosses her arms over her chest and then huffs when Raven catches her eye and flips her middle finger up. Clarke bites her lip in an attempt to stifle her laughter.

The referee walks out in to the middle of the field for the coin toss. Bellamy steps forward (Clarke is happy to note that they obviously managed to elect an acting captain in her place) and shakes hands with the rival captain, a tall girl with dark eyes and dyed blonde hair. Clarke raises her eyebrow.

‘That your sister?’

Lexa’s mouth twitches. ‘That is my friend, Anya.’

‘I’m surprised.’

‘Surprised that she is not my sister?’

‘Surprised that you’ve got any friends.’

Lexa brushes against her arm a _little_ too hard when they take their seats. Clarke smiles, and for some reason, decides that she’s going to enjoy sitting beside Lexa for the course of this match.

/

They’re half an hour in and nobody has scored, but it certainly hasn’t been dull. Lexa has been on her feet every minute or so screaming, and Clarke has been doing the same.

They haven’t said much to each other so far. Lexa is fine with that.

Anya has been playing exceptionally well, which does not come as a surprise to her. After all, Anya taught her everything she knows about soccer. An immense feeling of pride swells in Lexa’s chest when she watches her steal the ball away from the Arkers captain, a curly-haired boy that Clarke seems to be constantly yelling at.

‘Come _on_ Bellamy, don’t run with it, pass to Raven! Pass to Raven!’ Clarke slumps back down in to her seat and Lexa smirks at her, but they’re both on their feet again when Anya is heading straight for the goal. She easily slips past two defenders and sends the ball soaring in to the net.

Lexa cheers along with the Grounders supporters and bangs her hands against the chair in front of her. Anya looks up at the crowd and meets her eye. She raises her fist in to the air, ‘Jus drein jus daun!’ Lexa grins and shouts it back. Clarke looks miserable. That just makes her happier.

‘Get your hand out of your pants and catch the ball, Jasper!’ Their goalkeeper looks offended but Clarke doesn’t seem to care. They both sit back down. ‘Lucky shot,’ she mumbles.

Lexa stares straight ahead. ‘The first of many.’

She can tell that Clarke is shooting her a filthy look but she doesn’t meet her eye. She might smile if she does that, and she’s enjoying how bothered Clarke is by her lack of emotion.

‘Just watch,’ she kicks her feet back up on to the chairs, ‘we’ll give you that one and then we’ll annihilate you.’

‘We’re undefeated, Clarke.’

‘Only because you haven’t faced us yet.’

‘But we are facing you Clarke. And, if I am not mistaken, we are winning.’

Clarke opens her mouth and then shuts it. Lexa looks away and grins. This evening is turning out to be a lot more enjoyable than she had anticipated.

The ball is back in play by the time Clarke finally speaks up, ‘We’re only halfway through the season. You won’t keep up your streak forever.’

Lexa watches Anya intercept a pass. ‘I’m feeling confident.’

‘You haven’t even played the Hurricanes yet.’

The ball is stolen back by an Arkers wing. Lexa frowns. The Mount Weather Hurricanes are certainly an intimidating team to play. Mount Weather Private Boys College receives _a lot_ of funding for their sport teams. You pretty much have to be a star athlete to even get accepted there.

‘They are a commendable team, but I am not concerned.’

Clarke snorts so loudly that it takes Lexa by surprise. ‘Commendable? They’re a bunch of entitled assholes. Have you met their captain, Cage? Biggest asshole of the lot. Captain Asshole.’

Lexa smiles despite herself. ‘He is certainly… an interesting person.’

Clarke rolls her head over and looks up at her through her eyelashes. ‘Come on. Just say it. You know you want to.’

She bites her lip and shakes her head. ‘He’s rude.’

‘Come on, Lexa.’ She shifts her whole body around and faces her. ‘I know you’ve got it in you.’

She flicks her eyes over and then returns them to the field. ‘He’s _very_ rude.’

‘You’ll punch me in the face but you won’t talk shit about another rival team?’ She grins. ‘What makes me so special?’

Lexa shuffles in her seat. The sun’s gone down but it feels too warm. She inhales through her nose. ‘He’s a dick.’

‘Damn right he is.’

‘He’s a massive dick.’

Clarke leans over and talks from the corner of her mouth, ‘Little dick might be more fitting, actually.’ Lexa’s eyebrows shoot up. Clarke raises her hands. ‘I’m not talking from personal experience; it’s just what I’ve heard. You know, on the grape vine.’

Lexa laughs and Clarke grins at her. ‘You know,’ she says, ‘you’re a lot more pleasant when you’re laughing.’

They lock eyes for a moment and Lexa is about to speak again when a deafening roar rises up from the sea of sky blue across the stands. One of the Arkers has just scored a goal. Lexa watches the blonde girl do a backflip and grunts. Show offs.

Clarke is screaming a string of inaudible words and fist pumping. The half-time siren rings out and she drops back in to her chair. She looks way too pleased with herself.

‘Cheer up, Lexa.’ She’s grinning like an idiot. ‘You’re gonna lose but at least you get to see us play. Maybe you’ll pick up on a few things.’

For a _second_ , she almost felt like she could be friends with this girl. Now she’s contemplating the consequences of pushing her down the stairs.

Probably a bad idea, but she won’t rule it out before the night is over.

/

Raven drops down on to a chair and stretches her leg out. She doesn’t have a problem keeping up with the other players, but after a while she really starts to feel the weight of the brace. Bellamy drags himself in to the locker room and tugs his jersey off over his head. Once the other players have settled in, Monty pulls out the camcorder and starts going through the footage.

After a moment Clarke’s mom, Abby, strolls in. She’s wearing her cheesy whistle around her neck. Raven rolls her eyes.

‘That was a solid first half guys, but we can do better.’ Abby turns her attention to Bellamy. ‘Monroe wouldn’t have made that goal if you hadn’t passed the ball. Good job, Bellamy.’

Guess there’s no need to congratulate Monroe for _actually_ making the goal. Raven can see how uncomfortable that comment just made Bellamy, and Monroe is facing away from them and shaking her head. Usually Clarke gives out the pep talk between halves and Abby goes up in to the stands to visit Dean Kane. The only thing she controls is their training schedule on a Wednesday.

She glances around awkwardly. ‘Well, I’ll give you guys some time to mull things over.’

As soon as she leaves the room Raven groans. ‘Is it possible to be a college team without a coach? She doesn’t even do anything.’

‘She’s Clarke’s mom, Raven. We can’t just get rid of her.’ Bellamy pours some water over his head.

‘It’s not like Clarke wants her here.’

‘Come on guys let’s focus on the game.’ Monty pulls a chair over and flips the screen on the camcorder around. It’s showing the Grounders captain scoring a goal. ‘Look at the space between Harper and Fox, you practically _let her_ make that shot.’

Fox opens her mouth to complain but Harper stops her. ‘Go on Monty.’

He nods. ‘Their players are fast, but there’s no strategy. Watch it again.’ He rewinds the footage. ‘See how haphazardly she weaved through you two? There’s no plan. They just charge forward. If the two of you had positioned yourselves closer to the goal, she wouldn’t have made it through.’

‘But the halfbacks should have stopped her,’ Fox glances at Miller. ‘We’re the last line of defence; we’re the back up. She caught us off guard.’

Before anyone else can speak up, Bellamy is on his feet.

‘Back up? You’re the heart of this team. There’s no Arker out on that field that is more important than any other. You’re all key players. Every single one of us is relying on the other for support.’ He glances back at Raven. Despite herself she’s smiling, and it seems to spur him on. ‘I know everybody has a mark, and it’s your job to stay on them, but remember to watch your teammates. When we need each other, we can sense it. Go with your gut. The Grounders don’t implement a strategy; sometimes we don’t have to either. We play for each other, okay? Not anybody else.’ He slips his jersey back on. ‘And Monroe, that was nice work. I didn’t even have to look up to make that pass. I knew you’d be there.’

Raven drains the rest of her water bottle and shakes her head. Clarke gives this team direction, but Bellamy sure can deliver a Braveheart-worthy speech when he wants to. Sometimes she thinks that if it weren’t for him, she wouldn’t have worked up the courage to keep playing.

‘What do you think, inspiring or what?’ Bellamy extends his hand to help her up. She doesn’t take it.

‘Don’t flatter yourself, Freckles.’

He rolls his eyes and jogs back out as the siren rings again. She bites back a smile and follows behind the other players. 

 

The second half is definitely better than the first. Everyone seems to be playing with a new vigour, and she’ll never admit it, but Raven is certain it’s thanks to Bellamy. The opposition hasn’t even gotten close to the goal in the last thirty minutes, and the Arkers have almost retained possession for the entire time.

Every now and then Raven glances up to salute in the direction of Clarke’s screams, even though she can’t understand her over the general cheering from the crowd. She knows she’s only missing out on a few curse words, trusting Clarke. 

A tall Grounders guy sends the ball soaring past the touchline and Myles is positioning himself to throw it back in. At least five Grounders are surrounding Bellamy and Monroe. Nobody is covering her. Nobody sees her as a threat with this thing on her leg. It doesn’t bother her. It gives her an advantage.

She catches Bellamy’s eye and he gives an almost impertinent nod of his head. She smirks. He darts to the right and draws yet another Grounders player. Myles takes the opportunity and tosses the ball just ahead of Raven, who’s already running to meet it. Two of the three remaining defenders run at her, but she’s too fast for them. She keeps her eyes trained straight ahead as she rolls the ball smoothly and darts off, sending the players crashing in to each other.

Clarke is screaming for her to run, and she does; as fast as her leg will allow her to. The Grounders captain appears out of nowhere and attempts to rake the ball from her, but Raven shoots it off to the side without even looking. The captain slides past and Raven leaps over her, maintaining her pace. Bellamy appears beside her and is dribbling the ball right up to the goal. The very last defender is running forward to meet him, but Raven knows he’ll easily slip past.

But he doesn’t. He keeps running straight ahead.

‘Weave Bellamy!’ She’s screaming at him but he isn’t responding. The Grounder is going to knock him clean off the ground if he doesn’t make a move.

And he does make a move. At the last second, he shoots the ball back over to Raven and takes the full force of the Grounder’s weight as they slide right in to his legs.

She hears the sound of them both crashing in to the ground but she’s too close to glance back. The goalie is squaring up against her, just a little too far to the left. He thinks she’s going to make the kick with her right leg. Damn. She loves when people underestimate her. She’s four feet away from him when she hits the ball hard with her left leg. The goalie leaps for it but he can’t reach it, and it soars in to the net.

The roar from the crowd is deafening, she can see Clarke jumping up and down but can’t hear anything coming from her mouth. Lexa is still in her seat and looks extremely sullen.

Bellamy hits her hard from the side and lifts her up in to the air before the other players run forward and circle her in a crushing hug.

The Grounders goalkeeper is arguing with their captain. Raven can’t help but laugh.

The Arkers finally separate and leave her to walk back to her position with Bellamy. He grins, ‘I love it when they underestimate you.’

‘You finally did it, Freckles. You trusted me. See how easy it is for us to win when you just give the ball to me?’

He shakes his head. ‘Didn’t even have to think twice about it.’

Raven watches him jog back to his position. There’s ten minutes left on the clock but she’s not worried. She’s never felt so confident in her life.

/

Octavia doesn’t bother to stick around for the second half of the game. If the distant cheering is anything to go by, the Arkers are clearly winning. She didn’t miss much.

The track team normally inhabits this field, but everybody is at the game right now. She’s enjoying the solitude. The small equipment shed by the edge of the track is working well as the designated target for her to shoot the ball at. She hasn’t played soccer since she and Bellamy were kids. They used to play one on one matches in their tiny backyard while their mother looked on from the kitchen window. They must have spent every summer afternoon together; they were inseparable. Until Bellamy went off to high school and made real friends, and she stayed home learning math problems on a second-hand chalkboard. 

Sometimes it was hard to not be angry with her mother, but Octavia supposes that it isn’t really her fault. She was an accident – a baby that her mother had never expected she’d have to raise. She just didn’t have enough money to share between two kids. Or enough love, but Octavia is working on being less bitter about that.

She rolls the ball up with her ankle and balances it on top of her foot. It’s been a while, but she still remembers all the tricks she learnt as a kid. She tosses it up and leans forward to catch it at the base of her neck, and then she lets it roll forward and belts it in to the equipment shed. The tin rattles and echoes out across the field.

‘Nice shot.’

She spins around to spot a dark woman with short hair approaching her.

‘How long have you been standing there?’ 

‘Long enough to be impressed.’ Octavia frowns and then walks away from her to collect the ball. The woman stops walking but continues speaking, ‘I’m wondering why I didn’t see you on the field tonight. I take it that you’re an Arkers girl?’

Octavia drops the ball at her feet and starts rolling it back and forth. ‘I don’t have a team.’

The woman finally moves towards her and extends her hand. ‘My name is Indra.’ Octavia stares at her hand for a moment before shaking it. ‘I’m the coach for the Grounders and I’m always scouting for new players.’

Octavia narrows her eyes. ‘Shouldn’t you be over on the field with your players?’

‘My players have already lost this match, there’s nothing I can do for them now.’ She inhales through her nose. ‘I like to take a walk after a defeat. Helps to clear my head. Sometimes it inspires new strategies.’

She sends the ball flying back in to the equipment shed. ‘But it’s halfway through the season. I couldn’t join until next year anyway.’

Indra smiles. ‘With moves like those we’d make an exception. The Trikru College of Washington DC would be more than happy to offer you a scholarship.’

Octavia stops toying with the ball and looks up at her. ‘I’ll think about it.’

A loud roar erupts from the stadium. It’s safe to say that the game is over.

‘Don’t think for too long.’ Before Octavia can respond to that, Indra is gone. 

She takes a few steps forward to where the ball has rolled back and picks it up. The only reason she’s at this college is because it’s affordable. Yes, Bellamy is here, but Washington is only two hours away. She could still visit him all the time. And who knows? Maybe she’d actually make some new friends. If Indra is anything to go by, she thinks she might get along with the people there.

And she’d like to be in control of her own education again. Her mother will probably hold this over her head for years until she pays her back every last dime of her tuition. Maybe it wouldn’t be such a bad idea.

She kicks the ball but it goes flying past the shed and in to the shadows. She groans. Her aim always goes off when she’s the least bit distracted. Before she can walk over to collect it, the ball comes rolling back over to her.

She freezes. ‘Who’s there?’ There’s no response. ‘Don’t make me come in there and get you.’

A tall guy walks out in to the light. He’s older, probably a senior, and he’s handsome. The buzzed mohawk is a bit out-dated but the tight black jeans and loose fitting shirt are definitely working for him. Yeah, he’s _really_ handsome.

She looks him up and down. ‘Can I help you?’

He smiles and it causes the corner of his eyes to crinkle just the tiniest bit. ‘I’m Lincoln.’

She shrugs. ‘Okay _Lincoln_ , can I help you?’

Lincoln shoves his hands in to his pockets and takes a few steps closer. ‘I was just out walking and I saw you practicing. You know, with a few pointers, you’d be pretty good.’

She cocks an eyebrow. _Pretty good_. 

Octavia shoots the ball at his head but his hands dart up to catch it before it makes contact. He laughs. ‘Maybe better than I thought.’

‘You too.’

He throws the ball back to her and she stops it with her foot. ‘I was a goalkeeper for three years and a striker for one. I’m alright.’

Octavia’s foot hovers by the ball again before she kicks it back. He catches it and smiles. She smiles too.

When did she become such a sucker for a pair of brown eyes?

/

The game ends and they’re still ahead by one goal. As soon as the siren rings out, Raven feels herself being hoisted in to the air by several hands. The crowd is chanting for her and she’s tossed up twice before she falls through in to Bellamy’s arms.

She laughs and looks up at his face. For a moment, it looks like he’s about to say something, and then he drops her on her ass.

‘God Bellamy, what the fuck?’

He looks down and shrugs. ‘Didn’t want the attention to get to your head.’

She rubs her leg and stands back up. ‘Jackass.’

He laughs and wraps an arm around her shoulders. ‘Drinks at mine?’

‘Maybe I should spend tonight with Clarke.’

They both look up in to the stands. Despite the fact that the seats are emptying, Clarke and Lexa are still sitting together. Not ripping each other’s throats out.

Bellamy leans over and nods at them. ‘Maybe she’ll be busy tonight.’

Raven slaps his bicep. ‘Don’t be an idiot, Bellamy.’

‘What? She’s got a thing for brooding time bombs. Maybe we should keep an eye on her.’

‘Mind your own damn business.’ She tugs his arm in the direction of their other teammates, who are lining up to shake hands with the Grounders. ‘Besides, people can’t control their feelings.’

He raises an eyebrow. ‘Right, like you couldn’t control yourself with your Engineering TA? Have you spoken to Wick since he got transferred?’

‘Why do you care? Are you jealous Bellamy Blake?’

He snorts. ‘You’re crazy.’

They split apart to shake hands with the other team.

/

Lexa hasn’t unfolded her arms since Raven scored that goal, and Clarke is finding it hilarious. Kane is waiting at the bottom of the stands for them, but she’s not ready to get up just yet. ‘Are you going to stop pouting at some point?’

Lexa finally unfolds her arms and sits up straight. ‘I am not pouting.’

Clarke sticks her bottom lip out. ‘Are you upset? Cause you got beat? Cause we fried you extra crispy?’

Lexa shoves her shoulder; but it’s not hard, it’s playful. ‘The only reason you won is because _I_ wasn’t playing. Besides, this is our first loss of the season. We’re still even on the ladder.’

‘I suppose it is a shame that we didn’t get to play each other.’

‘There’s always the finale, Clarke.’

‘Yeah, assuming you make it.’

Lexa’s jaw twitches. That’s a reaction that Clarke has decided she enjoys eliciting.

‘You ought to watch your tongue. Any more fights and you’ll be out for the rest of the season.’

Clarke laughs. ‘Is that a threat?’

Lexa turns to look at her. ‘It’s a fact.’

The corner of Lexa’s mouth twitches. Almost a smile.

‘You know what?’ Clarke stands up. ‘I definitely don’t want to miss out on versing you on the field. That loss is gonna hurt a lot more than a punch to your jaw.’

Lexa stands too. ‘Here’s hoping we _both_ make it.’

They make their way down the steps to Kane, whose hands are folded behind his back. ‘Ladies.’ Clarke rolls her eyes at the greeting. ‘I trust that you’ve had a productive evening and put your differences aside?’

They turn to face each other. Lexa extends her hand first and Clarke takes it. At the same time, they both say, ‘I’m sorry.’

Kane claps his hands together. ‘It’s wonderful to see a genuine display of comradery from rival teams.’

Clarke ignores him and keeps her eyes trained on Lexa. She grips her hand a little harder. ‘May we meet again.’

After seemingly realising he is no longer needed (or wanted), Kane turns and walks away. Clarke goes to do the same but Lexa grabs her hand again. ‘Clarke, wait.’

She turns back and raises an eyebrow. Lexa bites her lip. ‘What if we could… guarantee that we would see each other again? In the grand final.’

Clarke narrows her eyes. ‘What do you mean?’

Lexa’s eyes dart to her right. All of the players are still talking amongst themselves on the field. ‘Well, we’ll be versing the same teams in the last few weeks leading up to the finale, what if we traded information.’

Both of Clarke’s eyebrows are raised now. This is a strategy that she’d definitely never considered before. ‘What, about the other teams?’

‘Sure, why not? You know it helps to understand a team’s plays before you go up against them. It’s not cheating, Clarke. Think of it as _comradery._ ’

Clarke frowns for a moment. With Kane breathing down their necks this season, winning their games has definitely taken top priority in her life. And the opportunity to kick Lexa’s ass on the field is pretty much the cherry on top.

‘Aright, I’m in, but I’m going to be attending the games. I don’t trust your word yet.’

Lexa nods. ‘That’s fine, I don’t trust yours either.’

They clasp hands one last time before breaking apart to meet their respective teams on the field. Clarke is immediately enveloped in a hug. She glances at Lexa from over the top of Bellamy’s shoulder. Their eyes meet. 

She hopes she just made the right decision for her team.

/

Octavia slides along the grass to prevent the ball from rolling past. Lincoln’s laughter echoes around them. ‘Good save. Ever considered being a goalkeeper?’

She throws it back to him. ‘I’d rather not play at all than be a _goalie_.’

Lincoln scoffs. She grins. It’s fun to stir him up.

‘You’re good.’ He kicks the ball back.

She rolls it up her foot and in to her hands. ‘I know.’

He must sense that she’s not planning to throw it back this time because he walks over to her. ‘So are you gonna tell me your name? Or am I just going to have to call you Mystery Girl?’

Before she can answer, a girl’s voice rings out, ‘Octavia!’

She exhales and hangs her head. It’s Clarke.

Lincoln grins at her and nods. ‘Octavia.’ He places a hand on her arm. ‘Maybe you should consider that scholarship.’

He’s gone before Clarke jogs down to her. ‘Hey, you missed the game?’

Octavia turns away from where Lincoln disappeared and drops the ball back down. ‘I caught most of it.’

She can feel Clarke’s eyes on her as she lines a shot up and sends the ball flying square in to the centre of the equipment shed.

‘You’re great. I didn’t know you played.’

She brushes past her on her way to collect the ball. ‘I don’t.’

‘Hey,’ Clarke stops her by placing a hand on her shoulder, ‘would you like to?’

Octavia looks down at her hand. Clarke withdraws it.

‘Look,’ she continues, ‘I know you’re new and that can be really hard. Maybe this would be a good way for you to reach out and make some friends?’

The lampposts surrounding the field go out. Octavia clicks her tongue. ‘It’s too late in the season.’

Clarke laughs. ‘Of course it isn’t. I’m the captain, Octavia. Consider this an official invitation to join the team.’

‘I’ve already had a better offer. From the coach of the Washington Grounders.’

Clarke looks down at the ground and nods. ‘If you think that will make you happy, go for it.’ She walks past her towards her dorm building. ‘I’m just surprised that someone as strong-headed as you is willing to give up an opportunity to show up her brother on his own team.’

Octavia watches her walk away before picking the ball up and heading back to her own room.

She thinks about Bellamy; how she always beat him when they were kids and then he’d act like he let her win. She wonders if he remembers.

Once she joins their team he will.


	3. Bonds

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the late update, I went away for a week to celebrate my birthday and have two uni assignments due. Rushed a little bit to get this up so excuse any grammatical errors.

She can see Bellamy jogging around the field with the other players. She hadn’t exactly told Clarke that she would show up for practice, but the offer had been extended, and after thinking it over she’d decided to take it. Octavia shrugs her backpack off and sits on the bench while she waits for the team to return. Clarke is leading them; she can see her blonde hair spilling out around her hood. Monty is sitting in the stands but they make no attempt to speak to each other. It’s not like she really knows him.

Clarke reaches her first. She doesn’t say anything, but she nods. Octavia nods back.

‘Nice of you to come and watch me little sis.’ Bellamy collapses on the bench beside her. If he didn’t drink so much beer he probably wouldn’t be panting so hard.

Octavia pulls her backpack down and rummages through it. She kicks off her motorcycle boots and starts strapping on her soccer ones. Bellamy leans back, ‘What are you doing?’

‘What does it look like I’m doing, idiot? I’m putting shoes on.’

‘Soccer boots?’

‘Yes.’

‘For soccer?’

‘No, for ballet.’ She stands up and walks away from him.

Clarke throws an arm around her shoulder. ‘Didn’t I tell you? Octavia’s our newest team member.’

Bellamy glances between them a few times before speaking. ‘Since when?’

‘Since now.’ Clarke smiles at her before walking away to set up some coloured cones. She’s really starting to grow on her.

Bellamy stands up. ‘I didn’t know you still played soccer.’

‘You don’t know a lot of things about me.’ It’s supposed to be playful, but it rings true. It’s not his fault – or hers. They’re just not as close as they used to be.

‘So if Octavia’s in, who’s out?’ He asks Clarke.

She shrugs. ‘I knocked Craig back to a substitute.’ Bellamy frowns at her. ‘Don’t look at me like that, he’s missed more practices than he’s showed up for.’

Raven appears and slaps Octavia a little too enthusiastically on the back. ‘That makes five girls on this team who can kick your ass now, Freckles.’

He mumbles something under his breath that sounds a lot like _I’ll kick your ass_ , but he’s very careful to not be loud enough for Raven to hear. Octavia doesn’t doubt that she could take him.

Her train of thought is broken by Clarke calling everyone over. Bellamy offers up an encouraging grin before joining the group.

Clarke folds her arms over her chest and beams at them all. ‘Yesterday’s game might have been our best work to date. Every single one of you came together and created something really great. I’ve never been prouder of you all.’

‘Thanks, Mom,’ Raven deadpans.

She rolls her eyes. ‘Anyway, you guys all know that we’re going to Wilmington on Thursday to play the Nomads, and they’ve got a streak going right now.’

Miller pipes up, ‘So do we.’ 

‘Yes, we both do, which means someone’s streak has to break. But it won’t be ours, not if we run Monty’s sixth play.’

Monty’s head shoots up. ‘But we haven’t run that one before.’

‘Right, which is why we need to practice.’

‘Uh,’ Octavia raises her hand halfway up, ‘I have no idea what that means.’

Clarke smiles. ‘That’s okay, we’re gonna show you. You’ll partner up with Raven today.’

‘Yeah kid, I’ve got you.’ Raven squeezes her against her side. ‘I’ll even teach you how to get the ball to hit Bellamy square in the back of the head.’

‘Hey!’ He spins around. ‘She doesn’t need you teaching her shit like that.’

‘Yeah,’ Octavia says, ‘I can already do that on my own.’

Raven bursts out laughing at the look on his face. Octavia grins; she’s really starting to like her.

Clarke picks a ball up and tucks it against her arm. ‘Bellamy, you’re with me. Harper’s with Fox, I want Miller with Monroe, and Atom with Myles.’

‘Hey,’ Jasper slides his goggles to the top of his head, ‘what about me?’

‘Take a breather, Goggles.’ Clarke drops the ball at her feet. ‘You can play with yourself for fifteen minutes. Wouldn’t be the first time.’ Jasper walks off and sinks in to a seat beside Monty.

‘The only way we’re gonna beat these guys is if we retain possession. Myles, that’s where you come in.’ She turns to face Octavia. ‘He’s our team phantom. Nobody can steal a ball like this guy. Myles, I want you feeding the ball back the moment you’ve got it. Straight to Bellamy or myself, got it?’ He nods. ‘The rest of you hold your positions and follow the play.’ She turns and places a hand on Octavia’s shoulder. ‘And you’ll be our striker.’

‘What? But I just started.’

‘And you’ve got the best aim out of anyone on this team.’ Octavia shoots a worried glance towards Bellamy but Clarke draws her attention back by gripping her tighter. ‘Hey, look at me. I trust you. I know you’ve got this.’

A strange feeling spreads over Octavia’s chest. She wonders if this is what it would feel like to have a sister.

‘It’s a 4-5-1 guys, we don’t need to win by a lot, we just need to win. Let’s line up and get started.’

Raven helps her shuffle in to position. The sun bounces off her brace and hits her in the eyes. She can’t help but stare at it. Raven’s voice breaks her concentration, ‘It doesn’t slow me down if that’s what you’re thinking.’

Octavia looks back up at her. ‘I know. I’ve watched you play. I was just thinking it might be lighter if it was made from aluminium.’

She raises an eyebrow. ‘You an engineer?’

Octavia shakes her head. ‘Language and Culture major.’

‘Aluminium isn’t strong enough to support my leg,’ she leans down and taps against her knee, ‘the titanium is heavy but it works. Besides, I’ve learnt to live with it. I don’t even notice it anymore. Most people don’t either, they’re too busy staring at my pretty face.’ Octavia doesn’t miss the way Raven’s eyes wash over Bellamy, but she’s polite enough to not comment on it. It seems like something Raven isn’t ready to know about herself yet.

Everyone turns to face Clarke when her watch starts beeping. ‘Shit. Hey, Jasper! Get over here. You’re with Bellamy.’

Jasper groans and jumps back down on to the field. Bellamy’s jaw tenses. ‘Why are you sticking me with goggle boy? He’s not gonna be able to run the play with me.’

‘Sorry Bell, I’ve gotta go.’ She apologises to everyone and hitches her bag over her shoulder. ‘I’m gonna watch the tapes when I get back. Don’t disappoint me.’ She winks at Octavia and then strides back up to the dorms.

Raven nods at Bellamy. ‘Hey, what the hell was that about?’

‘I don’t know. Why would I know? She’s got shit to do I guess.’

She doesn’t look satisfied with that answer.

‘She’s probably got to meet Kane or something and doesn’t want to worry you.’ Octavia shrugs when Raven looks over at her. ‘Just leave it.’

‘I’m with O. So who’s in charge of the play?’

‘Who do you think?’ Raven picks up a ball and tosses it to Octavia. ‘I’m always in charge when Clarke’s gone. Now go partner up with Jasper. See if you can convince him to keep his hand out of his pants long enough to run with you.’

Bellamy’s jaw tenses and he storms off towards Jasper. Raven wiggles her eyebrows at her and Octavia laughs out loud for the first time in days.

/

Her teammates are talking behind her, but Lexa isn’t paying attention. She’s applying her face paint in front of the small mirror that hangs on the door of her designated locker. She’s always the last member to put it on, it’s a tradition that she can’t recall the origin of. She turns her face to the side and runs her fingertips halfway down her cheeks, streaking the black paint. War paint, Anya calls it. Sometimes it feels that way, like she’s leading an army, like everyone is relying on her to keep them going - to keep them strong. Sometimes it’s a little overwhelming, but she’ll never let it show. She can’t let herself look that weak.

‘Hey,’ a hand slides over her shoulder and Anya comes in to view, ‘you’re burning holes in that mirror. What’s with the intense look?’

She turns to face her and the corner of her mouth twitches. ‘I’m just psyching myself up for the game.’

Anya narrows her eyes. That means she isn’t buying it. Sometimes having a friend that knows everything about you is inconvenient.

‘You’re nervous. Why?’

‘I’m not.’

Anya shakes her head. ‘We’ll discuss it later.’

Lexa closes the locker door just as Indra strides in to the room. ‘Lexa,’ she says as she grips her shoulder, ‘it’s time. Lead them out.’

She nods and calls out for everyone to be silent. Once they are, she speaks, ‘The Light Seekers are strong, but we are stronger; they are fast, we are faster; they are smart,’ she grips Gustus’ forearm, ‘we are smarter. Do not show mercy. Win.’

A cry of ‘ _Grounders!_ ’ rings out before they rise and follow her out on to the field. She shields her eyes against the glaring sunlight. It’s still early enough for the sun to have not completely risen in to the sky. A roar erupts from the stands when they come in to view. They’re not playing at home today, but the crowd is close to being split in half between dark green and yellow. It’s almost enough to make her smile, except that there’s something missing. Admittedly, she wasn’t really expecting Clarke to show up, but she stills feels a strange sense of disappointment. 

Her team members line up while she approaches the referee for the coin toss. John Murphy is looking as greasy as ever. He sneers at her and she blinks in response.

‘Your call,’ the referee says to Murphy. He calls Heads, but it’s Tails. He looks at Lexa, ‘Which goal will you attack?’

‘East.’

‘That’s in to the sun,’ Murphy says.

She tilts her head just slightly enough to look at him. ‘I’m aware.’

He snorts. ‘Try not to get hit in the head when I kick off.’

‘I’m not concerned. You will probably miss the ball.’

She glances up at the crowd again before taking her position. There’s still no sign of Clarke.

Murphy kicks the ball straight to her and she takes off immediately. It’s easy enough get past two of their attackers. Murphy doesn’t try to meet her, he stays out on the wing. That’s fine by her. A Light Seeker comes out of nowhere and steals the ball from her.

‘Good one, Grounder-bitch!’ Murphy taunts. Anya ditches her position to stride toward him.

‘No!’ Lexa calls out. ‘Stick to your player, Anya.’ She shakes her head but obeys. Murphy grins at her.

She spins back around to chase after their player who is heading straight for the sideline. There’s nowhere else for him to go. Two of her players drive him over the line. ‘Echo, take the toss!’

A Light Seeker intercepts the throw, but Anya immediately steals it back. Lexa keeps pace beside her. Murphy runs down the sideline, but he doesn’t have his eyes on the ball. He’s just staring at Anya. Before Lexa can do anything, he crashes in to Anya and sends her sprawling to the ground. When she doesn’t get back up again, the ref blows the whistle. The crowd leap to their feet and start yelling in an inaudible chorus. Lexa storms toward Murphy.

‘Hey, it was an accident. Besides, the bitch is fine – ’

Lexa coat hangers him by striking him in the throat with her forearm. He plummets to the ground. His hand scratches pathetically at his throat and he gags. The ref blows his whistle again and holds up a white card. 

One voice rings out clearly through the din of the crowd. ‘Come on ref, that’s BULLSHIT! He shoulder barged her, he deserves it!’ 

Lexa turns to see Clarke leading the crowd in a chant of ‘ _No penalty’_. She’s easy to spot – the one dot of blue amongst the crowd. Lexa shakes her head. Of course she’d wear her jersey here.

She walks over to Anya and helps her off the ground. ‘You shouldn’t have done that,’ she says once she’s on her feet.

‘You would do the same.’ They grip each other’s hands for a moment before Lexa moves to the sideline to wait out her penalty. She steps over Murphy on the way. ‘Jus drein jus daun, jackass.’

She’s on the bench for twenty seconds before Clarke sidles up behind her. ‘Murphy deserved it,’ she says, ‘he’s such a fuckass.’

‘I went with jackass.’

‘Well I’m promoting him to fuckass.’ She jumps the barrier and sits beside her. The other Grounders players on the sideline stare at them for a moment but look away as soon as Lexa meets their gaze. ‘You know,’ Clarke lowers her head, ‘if you really wanna get him back, his left knee is shot.’

Lexa cocks an eyebrow. ‘How do you know this?’

‘We played them three weeks ago. Bellamy took him out and he injured himself.’

‘By accident, of course.’

‘Of course.’ Clarke grins. ‘You’re playing well today.’

‘We’ve been playing for ten minutes.’

‘It’s been a good ten minutes.’

‘How would you know? You weren’t here.’

Clarke leans back and raises her eyebrows. ‘Were you looking for me?’

‘Of course not.’ She ducks her head and adjusts her shoelaces. She can feel her cheeks burning.

‘Didn’t think I’d show, huh?’ She laughs. ‘Like I’d pass up this opportunity. I can’t wait to whoop your butt in the finals.’

Lexa straightens up. ‘I am also looking forward to a rematch. Jus drein – ’

‘Jus don’t.’ Clarke finishes.

She laughs, but the look on Clarke’s face makes her wish she hadn’t.

‘Ah, so she does laugh. Good to know.’

The Light Seekers attempt a goal but Gustus catches it. Lexa jumps to her feet and yells along with the Grounders supporters. When she sits back down Clarke is smiling.

Lexa tucks her hair behind her ear. ‘What?’

She opens her mouth and closes it a few times before saying, ‘Nothing.’

‘Lexa!’ Indra is waving another player off. ‘Your five minutes is up, get back out there!’

She gets to her feet and glances back once at Clarke. ‘Good luck,’ she says.

‘I don’t need it.’

She doesn’t need to look back again to know that Clarke will be smiling.

/

It’s been two weeks in a row now that Clarke has been mysteriously disappearing. Every time Raven tries to bring it up with her she just avoids answering. And when Raven started spotting Lexa at their games and pointed it out to her, she just said, _‘Yeah, it’s cool.’_ She’s also traded in their five-thirty starts for seven o’clock ones.

If anybody else is as curious as she is they aren’t showing it.

‘You don’t think it’s suss that she’s been able to anticipate every move of the last two teams we’ve played?’ She asks Bellamy after Clarke ducks out of practice twenty minutes early. Again.

Bellamy shrugs. ‘I guess. I figured that’s just Clarke being Clarke. She’s good at predicting people.’

‘Yeah well I know Clarke, and she’s not that good.’

‘I gotta be honest with you Reyes, I don’t spend a lot of time wondering what kind of random crap Clarke gets up to when I’m not around.’

Raven snorts. ‘Cause you’re too busy? Who’s the last person you hung out with other than me?’

He kicks the ball back a little too hard. ‘Octavia.’

‘Oh, so your sister. Slow down there party animal.’

Octavia snickers but falls silent when he shoots her a filthy look.

‘Did either of you guys notice that the Grounders captain has been sitting at the back of the stands for our last two games?’

‘So?’ Bellamy passes the ball to Octavia.

‘ _So_ , last time Clarke spotted her in the stands she almost tossed her off of them. Now she doesn’t care? It’s weird.’

‘You’re weird.’

‘And you’re a dick.’ She sends the ball flying and Bellamy has to duck to avoid being smacked in the head by it. It rolls down the field.

‘I’m not getting that.’

‘Leave it. Come on Freckles, we’re going for a walk.’

‘You can’t make me run laps Reyes.’

‘No you god damn idiot, I mean we’re gonna follow her.’

‘Follow who?’

‘ _Clarke_ you complete moron. Jesus, maybe I should take Octavia with me instead.’

‘I’m not getting involved.’ She jogs over and picks up the ball. ‘Are we running this new play or not?’

‘You are.’ Raven slaps her on the back. ‘You’ve got this. Just listen to Harper and ignore anything Miller tells you to do.’

‘Hey!’ Miller says, but Raven has already turned her back and is walking away. Bellamy shrugs in Octavia’s direction and follows after her.

/

Nobody really bothered to stick around after Bellamy and Raven left. Octavia has been running drills alone for the last hour. She doesn’t mind though, she actually prefers it. Besides, they’ll make up the twenty minutes on Wednesday. 

‘Need a partner?’ Lincoln’s voice rings out before she sees him. He slides his bag off his shoulder and shrugs off his jacket.

‘Out walking again, huh?’

He smiles. ‘I just finished class. I figured you’d be down here.’

He’s not even trying to hide the fact that he was seeking her out. The thought makes her heart flutter. Meeting up with him had sort of become a weekly thing. She’d take a walk around eleven at night and he’d be there. Every time.

She gestures toward him with her head, ‘Come on down, I need a target to aim at.’

It’s not until he’s standing in front of her that she becomes aware that this is the first time they’ve actually interacted during the day. His eyes look golden in the direct sunlight.

‘You’re improving,’ he says as she passes the ball to him.

‘Yeah? How would you know?’

‘I came to your last two games.’

She sucks her bottom lip in to her mouth. If she knew he was there she probably would have spent less time hurling insults at the other teams. Not very professional.

‘But you keep feigning right just before you break away from the opposition. They’ll catch on to it soon.’

‘I do not feign right all the time.’

He laughs. ‘Next time I’ll bring a camera so you can see for yourself.’

She scoops the ball up. ‘I can prove you wrong right now. We’ve got tapes in the club house.’

‘Are we breaking in?’

She rolls her eyes. ‘Clarke gave me the key to pack up the equipment after practice, Mr. Juvie.’

‘Hey, I wouldn’t have agreed to it.’

‘Yes you would.’

He grins. ‘Yes, I would.’

He pauses beside her as she unlocks the door. She can feel the heat coming off of his body – or maybe that’s her imagination. Once they’re inside she sets up the television and he takes a seat.

‘You guys tape everything?’

‘Monty does,’ she says as she fiddles with a cord, ‘he’s a tech major, and an old friend of Clarke’s. He’s pretty much an honorary Arker.’

‘Is that so?’

‘Yeah, he’s got his own jersey and everything. It’s not official, but it says “Monty” on the back.’

‘It sounds like you’re really enjoying it.’

She stops fiddling and looks over her shoulder at him. ‘Yeah, I guess I am.’

‘So I take it you’re glad that you didn’t join the Grounders?’

The television finally turns on. Truth be told, she’s a little impressed with herself for getting it to work.

‘I wouldn’t say I’m glad. I’m content.’

He nods as she takes a seat beside him. Their hands are almost touching and she can feel her fingers twitching. She’s thinking about reaching over when his hand flits away to point at the screen. ‘Right there!’

‘What?’ She just sees herself passing the ball to Clarke.

‘Is there a remote? Pass it here.’ He rewinds it and then pauses. ‘Watch yourself.’ He plays it again and sure enough, she feigns right before darting to the left.

‘Aw, shit.’

Lincoln bursts out laughing.

‘It works every time though.’

‘Can’t argue with that,’ he says.

She snatches the remote back and goes to turn it off.

‘No, let it play.’ She looks over at him. ‘It’ll give me a chance to critique you more.’

She narrows her eyes and he pokes his tongue out at her.

After a moment his hand wanders over and their fingers lace together. They don’t say anything, but they’re both grinning like idiots.

/

They lost Clarke a few miles back. They had to sit about a dozen cars behind her because you can spot Bellamy’s stupid muscle car from space. It doesn’t matter though, they’ve already figured out where she’s going.

‘Step on it grandma, it’s almost nine-thirty.’

‘So what?’

‘If she’s gone to a game they’ll probably be kicking off now and we don’t want to lose her in the crowd.’

‘Why are you so bent out of shape on this?’ He keeps his eyes trained on the rear view mirror as he changes lanes. ‘Why is this so important to you?’

She folds her arms over her chest. ‘I don’t know. I just want to know what she’s up to.’

‘But why?’

‘I don’t _know_ Bellamy, I’m just worried about her. Our training sessions seem to be getting later and later, and after she skips out she always comes home well after dark.’ She glances out of the window. ‘I just want to make sure she’s okay.’

‘She will be, Reyes. But we’ll check it out.’

The Baltimore campus car park is so packed that they have to circle the block three times before pulling over. The college games usually draw a decent crowd, but this is ridiculous. Once they reach the field she realises that all the cars must belong to Grounders supporters because they’re taking up well over half of the seats.

‘There’s Captain Bitch,’ Raven says as Lexa intercepts a pass and tears up the field. She passes the ball to another player and glances up at the stands. It doesn’t take Raven long to realise she keeps looking at the same spot. She follows her eye line and spots a sky blue Arkers jersey. She swings her arm out and hits Bellamy in the stomach.

‘Fuck – ow, what the fuck – ’

‘It’s Clarke,’ she hisses, ‘she’s up in the stands. Lexa keeps looking at her.’

Bellamy squints up in to the stands and then starts laughing. Raven frowns at him. ‘What, it’s funny.’

‘How the hell is this funny?’

‘Clarke’s totally hot for the Grounders captain.’

‘No she’s not! God, you’re such a perv.’

The coach swaps Lexa out for another player. They both watch Clarke practically bound down the steps to talk to her. Bellamy shakes his head, ‘They look like a pair of lovesick puppies.’

‘Don’t be ridiculous, they hate each other.’

Lexa must have said something funny because Clarke is throwing her head back and laughing. ‘You can hate someone and still be attracted to them.’

‘Speaking from experience, Belly-boy?’

‘Yeah. I hate Kane but he is one good looking guy.’

Raven laughs and punches his arm. ‘Well, she’s not dealing drugs in a dirty alleyway, so I’m happy for now. Let’s head back.’

‘What? I just drove for an hour and a half and you want me to get right back in the car? No way, you fucking drive.’

She leans back against the rails. ‘Do you really trust me behind the wheel of your precious baby?’

His frown quickly becomes a groan.

‘Come on, Bellamy. We know where she is, now let’s get out of here before she sees us. Do you really wanna explain what we’re doing if she catches us?’

‘Yeah, I’ll tell her you kidnapped me from practice.’

‘Well, it’s not hard to believe that I could overpower you.’

He gives her a playful shove. ‘All right, let’s go. But I’m in charge of the radio for the trip back.’

‘No you aren’t.’

He rolls his eyes but follows after her.

/

Clarke waits behind the bleachers for Lexa. She usually catches the bus back with her team but she drove today so that they could talk after the match. They won by a whopping 5 – 1 but that doesn’t really surprise Clarke. After all, Lexa is a great player.

She’s only waiting for five minutes before Lexa appears. She’s still got some black face paint smudged around her eyes; it really makes the green stand out.

‘Thank you for waiting.’

Clarke grins. ‘Even if we weren’t trading tips, I would have wanted to talk to you about that match. That goal you scored where you kicked the ball mid-air? That was fucking wild.’ She can’t stop herself from raving and before she knows it, she’s recounting the entire match that Lexa just played back to her. ‘Man,’ she says after describing the look on one of the rival’s player’s faces when Lexa slid past and stole the ball from him, ‘you were so good!’ She pulls her in to a hug before she really knows what she’s doing.

Lexa groans, ‘You should control your emotions,’ but her arms wrap firmly behind her back.

The hug lingers for longer than it should. Their arms loosen and the hug becomes more casual – a little more intimate. Clarke breathes in and hears Lexa exhale by her ear. It’s oddly comfortable. Her feet shuffle forward just the tiniest bit and it brings them closer together. She’s not sure if she can feel Lexa’s heart beating or if her own is just going so fast she can’t tell the difference anymore. One of Lexa’s hands drifts up and comes to rest at the base of Clarke’s neck. She can feel her fingertips pressed against her. It makes her skin prickle. She realises it’s been a long time since she’s let another person this close to her. Since Finn left, she’s just been keeping her distance. Yeah, she hugs Raven, but it’s brief. This is different. Lexa smells like grass and sweat and some kind of sweet perfume. Clarke slides her hands back and starts pulling away. She can hear the breath hitch in Lexa’s throat. They’re both moving impossibly slow, held together by some kind of magnetic pull. Their cheeks brush together and the base of her spine tingles. Their noses are almost touching.

‘Hey!’ They snap back from each other when a stranger’s voice rings out. ‘Great game! I just wanted to – oh. Uh, sorry.’ A random spectator scurries off when they seemingly realise that they’ve interrupted something.

Not that there was anything to interrupt. Maybe.

Lexa exhales and Clarke takes a moment to let her heart rate slow down. She’s not sure what just happened but her whole body is buzzing.

‘Clarke,’ Lexa’s pupils are blown, Clarke tries to not notice, ‘I’m afraid I’m quite tired from the game. Perhaps we can meet again to discuss tactics another day.’

Clarke’s shoulders drop. ‘Oh, yeah, sure.’

Lexa nods and walks away. She takes three steps before pausing to turn back and face her. ‘Perhaps over dinner.’

‘Dinner?’

‘Yes Clarke, dinner. Instead of meeting behind dirty field stands.’

Clarke stares at her for a moment.

‘If that is an unsatisfactory term for you we do not have to – ’

‘No,’ Clarke says, ‘dinner. Yeah, that’d be fine.’

‘All right, I will text message you with the details.’

‘But you don’t have my number.’

‘Oh.’ She walks back over. ‘May I please have it then?’

Clarke nods and she passes her phone over. She punches in the number and enters herself in the contacts as ‘Hot Arkers Captain.’ Lexa takes the phone back and says goodbye before leaving. Clarke watches her walk away until she disappears. This has been a really weird afternoon.

/

Bellamy pulls in to a diner when they’re half way home.

‘What’s the deal Blake? I’ve got homework.’

‘No you don’t. And besides, I’m starving. And I haven’t eaten since this morning.’

She rolls her eyes. He pulls the keys out and throws his door open. She can stay in the car if she wants to, he doesn’t really care.

She climbs out and follows him in. There are only four other people in here. He sits down at a table by the counter but Raven walks right past him to a booth. He waits a moment before sighing and following after her. A pretty waitress with red hair comes up to their table.

‘Hi guys, what can I getcha?’

‘Hello,’ Bellamy grins up at her, he can see Raven rolling her eyes in his periphery but he ignores it, ‘what would you recommend?’

‘How hungry are you?’

He leans forward. ‘Very.’

‘Well we have a small selection of prime ribs, the seafood basket is – ’

‘He’ll have bacon and eggs. Fried hard. Make the bacon crispy. Mushrooms on the side.’ Raven snatches the menu from his hand and passes it over to her. ‘And I’ll have the rib eye. Rare.’

The girl’s eyes slide over both of them. ‘Coming right up.’ She folds the menus under her arm. ‘You guys make a cute couple. I’ll bring over a pot of coffee.’

She’s gone before either of them can correct her. 

‘Why did you order for me?’

‘Come on, Blake. We both knew what you would have, you just wanted to flirt with the pretty waitress.’

‘Is that a crime?’

‘It’s something I’d rather not assault my eyeballs with.’

He snorts. ‘You know I missed all my classes to come with you today.’

The waitress returns and places two mugs down. She fills them to the brim and Raven takes a sip of hers. ‘It’s not like you’re behind in any of them.’ He drinks from his mug instead of replying. ‘Right? You’re not, are you?’

‘No Reyes I’m fine. I just don’t want to give Kane an excuse to boot me. Can you imagine college without me?’

Raven’s eyes glaze over. ‘It’s a dream of mine.’

Bellamy picks up the saltshaker and tosses some on her.

‘Hey!’

‘Stop being so salty, Raven.’

‘That doesn’t even make sense Bellamy. You didn’t even use it right oh my god.’

They argue until their food arrives. Bellamy thanks the waitress but Raven immediately starts eating.

‘You’re supposed to wait for the other person before eating. It’s polite.’

Raven waves him away with her hand and slurps on her coffee. ‘Don’t talk to me about table manners, you’ve already spilt food on yourself.’

He glances down to see a bit of egg white on his lap. How did that even happen?

They eat in silence for a few blissful minutes until Raven pipes up again. ‘You know, if you’re struggling, I can help you out with your studies.’

He shovels some more food in to his mouth. ‘When did you become an expert in ancient history?’

‘I’m more of an expert than you are. The only thing you aced was Greek mythology and that was an elective.’

He drains the last of his coffee. ‘Just stick to melting bolts or whatever it is you do.’

‘God Blake, you’re such a dickhead sometimes.’

He flings a bit of rubbery egg at her. She dodges it and it smacks against the window. ‘That’s disgusting,’ she says.

‘Then you and the egg have something in common.’

She shoves the last forkful of steak in to her mouth and pushes her plate away. Their waitress returns to collect the plates and refill their coffee before either of them can object.

Raven takes a sip, ‘Is this free?’

Bellamy shrugs. ‘I don’t know. Maybe.’

‘So tell me what class you’re struggling with.’

Bellamy slides back against the chair and groans. ‘I never said I was struggling!’

‘But you are, I can tell. Just let me help you.’

As much as they mess around with each other, Raven is probably one of his closest friends. Asking her for help is still humiliating though.

‘Keep the coffee coming,’ she calls out. Bellamy frowns at her and she adds, ‘Please.’ She stretches her bad leg out and rests it on the opposite cushion. ‘Come on, we’re gonna comb through whatever it is you can’t pass.’

He shakes his head, but they spend the next few hours discussing ancient archaeology. It’s mid afternoon by the time they finish.

Raven downs her fifth cup of coffee. ‘We should probably head back. It’ll still take over an hour to get home.’

She goes to pull money from her wallet but Bellamy slaps down a note first.

‘Did you just pay for my food?’

‘Uh yeah I guess.’

She shuffles out of the booth and heads toward the exit with him. ‘If that was a date it’s the worst one I’ve ever been on.’

‘Don’t flatter yourself.’

She snorts. ‘Trust me, I’m not.’

 

The sun is down by the time they finally make it back to campus. Bellamy took a wrong turn around Newark and added an extra forty minutes to their trip. Which added another twenty minutes of insults from Raven. Lucky they’re finally home or he might have driven them both in to a tree.

‘God, what time is it?’ She asks after closing the door and stretching.

Bellamy pulls out his phone. ‘It’s just after six.’

‘It’s still early. Why am I so damn tired?’

‘I don’t know, considering I was the one that drove the _entire time_.’

‘Oh, cry me a river.’

‘You know Raven, I’ve had just about enough of you today.’

‘Enough of me? I sat down and ran through your homework with you for four fucking hours.’

‘Yeah, you volunteered to do that. I didn’t volunteer to listen to you insult me for the last fifteen miles of our trip.’

‘If you weren’t such a jackass I wouldn’t have to insult you.’

He slams his own door shut. ‘Sometimes I really hate you.’

‘Hey buddy, the feeling is mutual.’ She turns and starts walking away. But Bellamy can’t let it go. He’s at boiling point. The next sentence spills out of his mouth before he can stop it.

‘You know, I think you’re being such a bitch lately because you need to get laid.’

She freezes mid-step. Straight away he knows he’s made a mistake, but he’s too angry and wired to control himself. ‘What the fuck did you just say to me?’

He leans back against his car. ‘I said you need to get laid.’

‘ _I_ need to get laid? How long has it been for you, four months? Five?’

‘I’m not turning in to a short tempered bitch over it.’

‘No, but you’re failing. Probably too busy staring at your lecturer’s asses every time they bend over. And I’m including Mr. Dante.’

‘Maybe if you had sex you’d stop jumping down everybody’s throats.’

‘Maybe if _you_ had sex you’d stop flunking and actually become a decent soccer player!’

They both pause. This is getting out of control. He tries to storm past her but she grabs his arm. ‘Bellamy, wait.’ Her tone makes him stop. ‘Maybe we’re both right.’

‘What do you mean?’

‘Maybe we both need to get laid.’

‘Yeah, so what?’

‘Come on idiot, fit the puzzle pieces together.’

If she’s trying to be clever he’s really not in the mood for it. ‘Look Raven, I just want to go up to my dorm and go to bed so unless you – ’

‘Jesus Blake, I’m talking about you and me helping each other out!’

He pauses. ‘With what, homework?’

She runs her hand over her face. ‘You know what? Never mind.’

She’s halfway out of the parking lot before it clicks. Oh.

‘Hey, Raven – Raven!’ He jogs over to catch up with her. ‘Are you serious?’

‘Why wouldn’t I be?’

‘I don’t know. Wouldn’t it ruin our friendship or whatever?’

‘Do you really care?’

He does. ‘Nah, guess not.’

She sighs. ‘Just think of it as two friends helping each other out. We’ve had a long day, we’re both stressed out, it’ll just be a one time thing.’

‘A one time thing?’

‘That’s right.’

‘And you’re sure about this?’

She rolls her eyes and tugs him forward. ‘Yes, I’m sure. I know you’re tired but I’m sure it won’t take long.’

‘Hey, what the fuck does that mean?’

She laughs. ‘Don’t ruin the mood, Blake.’

/

It’s almost eleven and Raven still hasn’t come in. She must be playing video games at Bellamy’s again.

Clarke’s phone lights up and she rolls over to check it. It’s from Lexa. She quickly adds her to her contacts.

 **Captain Serious 10:57pm:** Hello Clarke. I am contacting you so that you may store my number in your phone. – Lexa. P.S. Thank you for the creative contact name.

The only sound in the room is coming from her fingers tapping against the screen.

 **Hot Arkers Captain 10:58pm:** It’s a bit late for txting isn’t it? What are u doing up?

 **Captain Serious 11:03pm:** I am studying, Clarke. I apologise if I woke you.

 **Hot Arkers Captain 11:04pm:** U didn’t. So where did u want to meet for dinner?

 **Captain Serious 11:08pm:** A little place in Annapolis. It is a favourite of mine. I’m sure you will enjoy the food.

 **Hot Arkers Captain 11:10pm:** The food but not the company

 **Hot Arkers Captain 11:10pm:** :P

 **Captain Serious 11:17pm:** Ha ha. I will contact you tomorrow with further details. I am going to sleep now. Good night, Clarke.

 **Hot Arkers Captain 11:18pm:** Night x

She stares at her phone for a moment before tucking it under her pillow. Excitement is fluttering around in her chest but she’s not sure why. After a few minutes, her phone goes off again.

 **Captain Serious 11:21pm:** :)


	4. Revelations

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Surprise! An update. I didn't forget about this, I've just been too busy for it. But I'm still getting messages about it, so I decided to do a new chapter for you guys! And because you had to wait so long, I've made it good.
> 
> (May have rushed it a bit so I wouldn't lose interest - please excuse the grammar).

Clarke wakes up with half of her body hanging out of the bed. She didn’t sleep well last night and now she’s got a dead leg. Great.

After spending several minutes wiggling her foot around to try and get some feeling back in to it, she realises there’s a body in the opposite bed. Raven must have gotten in very late because Clarke was up for most of the night. Not unusual but still intriguing. She’ll remember to grill her when she wakes up.

She checks the time on her phone and sees that there are two unread messages.

**Captain Serious 6:16am:** Good morning, Clarke.

**Captain Serious 6:49am:** Please feel free to contact me when you are awake :)

Her chest is immediately flushed with warmth. It’s a difficult feeling to ignore.

Shit. These messages are from three hours ago. Lexa’s going to think she’s a slob for sleeping in this late. She’s got to keep up the allure of being tough competition, right?

Clarke begins typing a message.

_Hey, just got back in from a morning run._

She deletes it. That doesn’t sound convincing. What, she went for a three-hour jog? As if.

_Hi, sorry, was absorbed in my study and didn’t notice my phone go off._

She deletes this too. Nobody ever believes the ‘I didn’t hear my phone go off’ line.

Damn. Why does she feel like a fifteen year old kid right now?

Clarke kicks the covers off and stretches, dropping her phone on the pillow. She needs to let her brain wake up before shooting off any messages.

She strides past Raven toward the bathroom and turns the shower on. She doesn’t bother closing the door. At this point her and Raven are so close they could probably name every freckle on each other’s bodies. Including the one on Raven’s left butt cheek.

The water’s the tiniest bit too cold. The hot water system in this dorm is absolutely shit. Normally she finds it invigorating, but right now it’s just annoying.

She empties some shampoo in to her palm and begins massaging it through her hair. It’s the cheap kind you find at one of those stores that sell Christmas decorations and ripped-off Disney toys. It makes her hair smell like air freshener.

Not like Lexa’s hair. It smelt like coconut. Or maybe that was her sunscreen. It was hard to tell because she was hugging her right after the game.

Clarke’s breath hitches in her throat when she thinks about it.

Maybe a cold shower is what she needs right now.

 

By the time she finishes her shower Raven is slurping down a bowl of rice bubbles. Clarke notices her brace lying at the foot of the bed. It wasn’t there before she had her shower. She must have slept in it.

‘Good morning sunshine,’ Clarke says as she towels her hair dry. ‘What happened to you last night? You look fucked.’

Raven’s eyes pop out of her head. ‘What? Nothing. What happened to me? What happened to you? You were gone all day.’

That’s the fastest deflection Clarke’s ever witnessed. But she knows Raven well enough to realise it’s not something she’s ready to talk about right now.

‘Uh I had some stuff to do.’ Raven cocks an eyebrow. Not very convincing. ‘Errands. For Abby.’

‘Right. Always looking out for Abby, huh?’

‘That’s me. World’s best daughter.’

This banter is uncomfortably awkward. Clarke decides to walk away to get dressed.

She clears her throat. ‘Did you check your emails last night?’

‘I never check my emails.’

‘Abby’s moved tomorrow’s training session to today. She’s going out of town tomorrow.’

Raven groans. ‘Fucking perfect.’

Clarke takes her time pawing through her wardrobe. ‘Going to class today?’ She asks from behind her half-closed closet door.

Raven finishes off her cereal and dumps the bowl in the sink. ‘Nah. I’m not feeling it. I’ve got stuff to do today anyway.’

Clarke slips a yellow sweater on. ‘But you’ll make it to practice, right?’

‘Will you?’

This conversation is too tense. Clarke decides to just play it off.

‘Ha ha very funny. Just don’t be late, Blackbeard.’

‘Don’t _call_ me that, it’s _not_ a peg leg.’

Clarke laughs. ‘Aye aye, captain.’

Raven hurls a pillow in her direction. The air feels lighter.

/

Lexa tries to concentrate on the textbook in front of her, but her eyes are darting to her phone every few seconds. She can’t help it. It’s driving her mad. She can’t stop fretting over the last message she sent. Was that stupid smiling face necessary? Texting is a ridiculous form of communication.

‘What’s your damage?’ Anya snatches her phone off the desk. ‘Why do you keep looking at this thing? Since when do you use your phone?’

Lexa reaches for the phone but Anya is too quick for her.

‘Come on, Anya. I’m waiting on an important text.’

‘From who – your dentist? You don’t even answer my texts.’

‘Your texts are unintelligible.’

‘Bae is a word, Lexa. People use it in sentences. With context.’

‘Well I don’t understand it so stop calling me it.’

‘Never.’

Lexa lunges for her phone a few more times until Anya takes pity on her and hands it back. She buries it in her pocket.

‘Don’t you have class anyway?’ Anya swings her bag over her shoulder. ‘Walk with me.’

‘I’m not attending today. I have to meet Indra in twenty minutes.’

Anya rolls her eyes. ‘What are you guys always gossiping about these days?’

Lexa snorts. ‘I don’t gossip.’

‘If you say so.’ Anya heads out of their dorm. ‘See you tonight bae.’

Lexa kicks the door closed from her desk chair. She unlocks her phone screen for the hundredth time. Nothing. Frustrated, she tosses it on to her bed.

As soon as it lands, the message tone rings out. Lexa leaps from her chair, but in realising what she’s done, clears her throat and walks calmly to her bed. Nobody is watching but that doesn’t mean she can’t try to preserve her dignity.

**Hot Arkers Captain 10.41am:** Hey, I was in class. What’s up?

Lexa grins. She places the phone down and pulls a jacket out of her cupboard. Replying too quickly would seem suspicious. She watches six minutes tick by on her watch before typing her reply.

**Captain Serious 10.47am:** Would you still be interested in having dinner with me tonight?

She bites her lip.

**Captain Serious 10.47am:** To discuss strategies.

She waits.

**Hot Arkers Captain 10.49am:** Sure. Annapolis, rite? That’s a long trip for me. Better be worth it.

Lexa’s mouth twitches.

**Captain Serious 10.50am:** I can assure you it will be.

She pulls her small backpack out from beneath her bed and secures it over her shoulders. Just as she is closing the dorm door behind her, her message tone sounds again from her pocket.

She can’t prevent the smile tugging at the corner of her lips.

/

Octavia kicks her desk so hard it makes a framed photo fall from the wall and shatter. She doesn’t care. It’s her roommate’s and they’re never around anyway.

She shouldn’t be this affected. Her mother’s always been insufferable. Always been unsupportive. But that phone call has her all bent out of shape.

She foolishly expected her to be happy about her playing on the team. But the first words out of her mouth were ’Won’t that be distracting for Bellamy? He’s very serious about it, Octavia. Maybe you should find another hobby while you’re there. Like studying.’

It’s lucky that the phone didn’t break in her hand; she was gripping it that hard. The rest of the conversation had been a dull one.

‘Yes mother.’ ‘No mother.’ ‘Bellamy’s doing fine.’

It’s unfair. Not because her mother should love them equally or whatever, but because it makes it hard to not become bitter. And the last thing she wants to do is hold any resentment toward her brother - the only person looking out for her.

It takes a moment for the sound of her phone ringing to break through the fog that’s settled over her brain. She’d tossed her phone away after hanging up so it takes her a moment to find it.

‘Hello?’

‘Hey, Mystery Girl.’ She can hear his smile through the phone. ‘Tell me, what are you up to tonight?’

‘I’m going in to a catatonic state because it will be more fun than my morning.’

He sucks in air between his teeth. It’s what he always does when she says something negative. ‘Your mother, huh?’

‘The one and only.’ She nudges the broken frame glass with her foot.

‘Hang out with me tonight.’

‘I can’t. I need to study. My mother’s on my ass about it.’

‘Like you owe her anything. We both know your grades are fine.’ He pauses. ‘When you become a professional soccer player you can repay your tuition with the spare change in your back pocket. Forget about it. Hang out.’

She shakes her head, but she’s smiling. Which means it’s too late.

‘Okay,’ she says.

‘Okay.’ They share a moment of silence. ‘Meet me on the field after the lights go out.’

Before she can respond, he hangs up.

Mystery Boy.

/

The blinds are flickering just enough to make the sun shine in Bellamy’s eyes. He groans and rolls over. His hand gropes around until it makes contact with his phone.

Shit. It’s almost midday.

‘Raven, we gotta – ’

The bed’s empty.

‘Raven?’

He climbs out of the bed and slides some pants on. She’s probably in the bathroom.

His knuckles wrap gently against the wooden door. ‘Raven, you in there?’ The door is unlocked. The room’s empty.

His shoulders slump. He doesn’t know what he was expecting, but it wasn’t this. Now it feels weird.

Or is he just making it feel weird? Would it have been worse to wake up together? Would they have talked about it?

He runs a hand through his hair. Whatever. It’s not important. He always overreacts to this kind of stuff.

The blinds twist as he slides them open. One day they’re all just going to fall off. A couple of people are running track. He used to do laps late at night when he first started here. Before all his evenings were taken up by Raven.

He sits back on the bed and pulls out his laptop. If he drops it one more time it’s done for, so he lowers it gently on to the bed.

There’s an email from Abby.

‘Shit!’ Bellamy leaps from the bed and starts pulling on his soccer gear. ‘God damn it, Abby.’ He trips over himself as he laces his shoes.

He quickly shoots a group text to everyone.

Octavia replies back first: ‘You’re late.’

 

Abby talks for about five minutes before taking a seat in the bleachers. It’s all just for show. She probably doesn’t even know how many games they’ve won this season.

Clarke runs them through some basic drills. He’s not really paying attention.

Raven hasn’t looked at him once since he got here.

‘Bellamy? Hello?’ He looks up. Clarke is staring at him. ‘Were you even listening?’

‘Yeah, yeah.’

‘So what do you think?’

He glances at the other teammates but they’re giving no indication as to what she’s talking about.

‘Uh,’ he says, ‘yes?’

Clarke sighs. ‘God damn, Bell, get your head in the game.’ She turns away from him. ‘Raven, you in?’

Raven doesn’t respond either. Clarke narrows her eyes.

‘Laps,’ she calls out to everyone. ‘Now. Knees up to your chests.’ Everyone takes off. ‘Not you two,’ she says to Raven and Bellamy.

Shit.

She beckons them over. Bellamy tries to keep his cool.

‘Okay. Fess up. What’s with you two today?’

Bellamy swallows, but before he can say anything Raven pipes up.

‘Nothing’s up, Griffin. Nobody thought they had to train today, that’s all. I’m still sore from yesterday.’

Clarke looks between them for what feels like an eternity before sighing. Bellamy remembers to breathe again.

‘I know, you guys. I’m sorry. Look, we’re just gonna do some basic shit to keep Abby happy and then we’re out of here. We’ll organise a proper training session before the next game, deal?’

‘Yeah, I’m down.’ Raven pauses too long before continuing. ‘I’ll just stick to kicking balls at Freckles’ head today.’

‘You can try,’ Bellamy snorts. It’s too easy to fall back in to the banter.

Clarke seems satisfied and walks away. Raven meets his eyes for a moment. ‘We’ll talk later, yeah?’ She jogs away.

Why does his chest feel like this?

/

Today was a disaster. Nobody was focussed. Of course Abby would spring a last-minute training session on them just so she could go gallivanting around with Kane tomorrow.

Clarke sighs. It’s starting to rain. Tiny spots are forming on her windshield. She flicks the wipers on for a moment.

The GPS says she’s thirty minutes away. She didn’t recognise the address Lexa texted her, but she’d never really spent a lot of time in Annapolis.

She runs a hand through her hair. If she knew it was going to rain she wouldn’t have worn this stupid outfit.

Oh god, what if she’s overdressed? She has no idea what this place looks like. Why did she wear a dress? She barely ever wears dresses. And this is a summer dress. She hopes it’s indoor dining.

The car radio says it’s quarter past six, but she’s pretty sure it’s fast. She can’t be late. Lexa’s so punctual – she’s probably already there.

Why is she so nervous? Shaky fingers tug at the collar of her dress. This damn stupid outfit.

She turns on the radio to drown out her thoughts. Music’s always been calming for her.

She’s just starting to feel okay when her GPS informs her she’s two minutes away. She realises she’s gripping on to the wheel a little too tight and relaxes her hands.

Lexa is probably waiting out the front, stoic as ever, not a care in the world.

It takes her a moment to find a decent park. It’s not raining right now but the clouds are looming above her head. Hopefully they hold out until she’s inside.

Her eyes wash over the buildings in front of her, but there’s no 405. There’s a nice restaurant here but she can’t see Lexa inside. Maybe she got the address wrong.

Clarke is taking out her phone when she notices a couple go in to a tiny alley between two shops. Curious, she peeks down. A small doorway is visible at the end, and there are fairy lights strung around it. The number 405 is written above the door in ornate golden lettering. Surely, this can’t be it. Lexa’s too stuffy for this place.

Clarke glances around before making her way to the door. The moment she steps through she spots that mass of tumbling brown hair sitting by a window still covered in a few lingering droplets of rain.

Clarke crosses the floor. ‘Miss Heda.’

Lexa jumps. ‘Clarke!’ she exclaims. ‘I didn’t see you come in. You look…’

‘Stupid, I know. It was hot when I left Philadelphia.

‘I was going to say lovely.’

Clarke feels her cheeks burn, but she thinks she can pass it off as being cold.

‘I chose a spot by the fire, I hope that’s alright?’ Lexa rises from her chair and extends her hand.

Clarke stares at it, dumbfounded. Eventually she shakes it.

‘Most people hug, you know?’ Clarke says.

‘I don’t.’ Lexa walks over to pull out the opposite chair before taking her seat again. She’s wearing a perfectly creased skirt. Her fitted top falls just above it, showing off a small section of her stomach. Clarke averts her gaze.

It’s a little intimidating sitting directly across from Lexa. There’s nowhere to look but straight in to her eyes.

Lexa sips at her coffee.

‘You ordered before I got here? Rude.’

‘You were late.’

‘No, you were just too early.’

Clarke beckons a waitress over and orders herself a cup of tea. Lexa raises an eyebrow.

‘What? Coffee makes me jittery. And it stunts your growth.’

Lexa snorts, but apparently has enough tact to not bring up the fact that Clarke is shorter than her.

‘So,’ Lexa begins after the tea is placed on to their table, ‘clearly this… partnership, if you will, is proving to be quite successful. For both of us.’

Clarke takes a sip of her tea and scowls. They never make it strong enough for her. It takes her a moment to realise Lexa is waiting to be prompted further.

‘Uh, yeah.’ It’s all she can offer. Lexa looks unimpressed.

‘Right, so, I told my coach about it.’

Clarke chokes on a mouthful of tea. Lexa doesn’t seem alarmed.

‘You what? Are you fucking crazy? This could get us banned, Lexa. As in, _banned for life._ ’

The waitress returns and places a small plate between them. There are little pastries on it.

‘Thank you.’ Lexa says. ‘I took the liberty of ordering this for us. Hope you don’t mind.’

Clarke opens her mouth, but nothing comes out. She has no idea what to say. Can she just start hurling insults in public? Probably not.

Lexa pops one of the pastries in to her mouth. Clarke watches the muscles in her jaw tense as she chews.

‘Please,’ Lexa gestures to them, ‘try one.’

Clarke frowns, but reaches for one anyway. She takes half a bite.

Damn it. It’s really good.

‘There is no need to panic, Clarke. Indra will not turn us in. In fact, she was rather impressed.’

‘At what?’ Clarke finishes her pastry and reaches for another.

‘At my ability to befriend even the likes of you.’

She stops chewing. Just when she thinks she could like this girl, she says something stupid like that.

‘The likes of me?’

She can tell Lexa can pick up on the tone. ‘Yes. You’re a great player Clarke, and a great leader. She’s impressed that you trust me.’

Now she’s not sure if she’s being complimented or insulted.

‘Indra’s been watching you for a while now, ever since you first started playing for the Arkers. You’ve impressed her, and that’s not an easy feat.’

Clarke swallows her third appetizer. ‘Where is this going?’

Lexa folds her hands neatly in her lap. ‘She’d like to meet you.’

‘But we’re rivals.’

‘On the field, yes, but not out here. Look at us; we’re eating a meal together. Or at least you’re eating it.’

Clarke laughs. ‘Look, if she thinks she’s going to poach me she can just forget it.’

Lexa shakes her head. ‘She just wants to talk strategy with you.’

‘I’ll only talk to you.’

Lexa’s steely gaze falters for a moment, just enough for Clarke to see the start of a smile. But it’s over before it really starts.

‘Please, Clarke.’

There’s something deeply genuine in her. It’s making Clarke go soft.

‘Okay.’

Lexa looks relieved. ‘We should celebrate! Would you like a glass of wine?’

Clarke snorts. ‘How about a whiskey?’

Lexa wrinkles her nose. ‘Can we compromise and make it a cocktail?’

‘Okay, but I’m getting the most alcoholic one on the menu.’

Lexa raises her arm to order.

/

Raven slides her sunglasses higher up her nose. The sun is almost completely down but she doesn’t take them off. She can pull off the look anyway. This café is only a short walk from the college and she really can’t take any chances. There’s one person seated outside, bundled up in several layers. She takes a seat opposite him and he laughs.

‘Trying to avoid the paparazzi?’ He sips from his mug.

‘Shut up Wick.’ She picks up a menu and squints at it. It’s impossible to see the writing. ‘Damn it.’ Raven tears her sunglasses off but hitches her scarf higher.

‘You know,’ Wick says, ‘you don’t have to be this secretive. I’m not your TA anymore.’

‘I guess it’s a habit.’

Wick eyes her over his drink. ‘So, are we gonna talk about it or have you already chickened out?’

Raven slams down the menu. ‘I’m not chickening out. I’m just thinking.’

‘Well think out loud.’

A waitress comes out and offers them a seat inside but they decline. Raven’s always liked the cold. And she’d rather be sitting out here in the dark than inside bathed in light. Someone might see her. They wait until the waitress leaves before continuing.

‘Okay,’ Raven sighs as though the words are being dragged from her, ‘there’s this guy.’

Wick leans back in his chair. ‘Don’t tell me you’ve caught feelings?’

‘At least it’s not gonorrhoea.’ 

Wick snorts in to his drink.

‘This isn’t weird, right? Talking about this kind of thing?’

‘No Raven, I’m fine. I wouldn’t be engaged if I couldn’t talk to my ex girlfriend about her romantic life without feeling weird about it.’

‘Oh, right.’ She laughs. ‘I just wanted to make sure.’

They weren’t friends, not really. They’ve only seen each other a few times since the split, but sometimes you have such a strong connection with someone that nothing could ever wipe it out entirely. They still seek each other out for advice. She _is_ the one who convinced him to propose after all. Of course she hadn’t actually had feelings for anyone since their break up. She’s not even sure that’s what’s happening right now. That’s why she’s here.

‘I need advice. Relationship advice.’

‘Hold on now, did I just hear the R word come out of your mouth?’

‘You’re about to hear a different word if you don’t quit it.’

He puts his hands up as a sign of defeat. ‘Please, continue.’

‘I have this… friend. A good friend. And they’ve always just been a friend, you know? And maybe there was a bit of flirting but nothing serious. And now I’ve slept with them, and everything’s going to be all messed up, and this friend –‘

‘Raven,’ he interrupts, ‘I’ve deciphered your code.’

She sighs. ‘Alright, it’s Blake.’

‘Octavia or Bellamy?’

She punches his arm. _‘Bellamy._ ’

‘You finally slept together?’

She leans back in her chair. ‘What do you mean _finally?_ ’

He groans. ‘Come on, everyone saw it coming except you two. Guaranteed to hate fuck at some point. Although judging from your demeanour that’s not exactly how it went down.’

‘Well, he went down.’

Wick groans. ‘You’re lucky anyone’s able to see past that sense of humour.’

‘I’m hilarious.’ The waitress returns and places a steaming cup of hot coffee in front of her. Raven takes a tiny flask from her jacket pocket and tips it in.

‘Rum?’ Wick asks.

‘For the cold,’ she grins. She takes a sip and waits a moment before continuing. She hates admitting faults, but mostly because it takes her so long to think of any. ‘Look, we both know that when it comes to relationships, I can be a little…’

‘Distant? Closed-off? Inscrutable?’ 

‘I was just gonna go with complicated.’

‘Complicated works.’

Jackass.

‘And I don’t want to complicate things with Bellamy. I don’t want to lose a friend for the sake of a fling.’

‘How do you know it’s just a fling?’

She stirs her drink around before sipping again. ‘It always is with me.’

Wick shakes his head. ‘You’re letting your insecurities get in the way.’ She screws her face up. ‘Don’t give me that look Reyes. The world’s not going to crash and burn if you let yourself be vulnerable. Especially in front of someone that cares about you.’

She throws her head back and groans. ‘I hate all this soft bullshit. I just want to be a hard ass bitch.’

‘Who says you can’t be both?’

A platter is placed between them. Wick doesn’t even bother reaching for the quiches. They both know Raven’s going to eat all of them.

‘I just don’t know what to do. He was being a real dumbass around me today. I think the whole thing has weirded him out.’

‘And how do you know, did you ask him about it?’

She pops a quiche in her mouth and avoids his eyes. 

‘That’s what I thought. Look, it’s as simple as this: you either talk to him and tell him it was a one-time thing, or you tell him you want to explore it. You can’t ignore him, because you won’t come out of it with a boyfriend _or_ a friend.’

‘Nobody said boyfriend.’

He rolls his eyes. ‘You’re such a child.’

Raven whacks him with one of her crutches. He laughs, and after a moment, reaches across the table for her hand.

‘You know I only want you to be happy, right? So do what makes you happy, even if it’s scary.’

She squeezes his hand. Maybe being vulnerable isn’t the _worst_ thing in the world.

/

Octavia is halfway to the track field and cursing herself for not bringing a jacket. The sky is crystal clear and covered in tiny specks of silver, and it tricked her in to thinking she’d be fine. She’s covered in gooseflesh thanks to the chill from the breeze.

She watches the field lights flicker out in a row, but there’s a tiny light emanating from the middle of it. Lincoln’s already here.

Once she reaches him, she can see that he’s sitting cross-legged on a picnic mat with an old-fashioned lantern. Where did he even find that?

‘Hey beautiful.’

She hates corny lines, but when a guy like Lincoln delivers them they make her insides melt. She looks at the display he’s set up and grins.

‘Hey Betty Crocker.’

‘That’s Mr. Crocker to you.’ She’s barely sat down when he drapes a blanket over her. ‘How did I know you weren’t going to bring a jacket?’

She laughs. ‘I guess you know me well.’

‘I hope so.’ He smiles at her for a moment, and then pours her a hot drink from a thermos. It smells like hot chocolate, but tastes a little sweeter.

‘What –’

‘There’s butterscotch syrup in it.’

Octavia nods. ‘It’s good.’ She hitches the blanket a little higher up and realises Lincoln is staring at her. ‘What?’

‘Nothing. You’re just kind of amazing.’

‘You’re such a suck up.’

Lincoln laughs. She loves the way it sounds. It’s deep, but very light and warm.

‘I mean it though.’

She gives him a light shove. ‘I know, I know. I’m the most talented soccer player in the world.’

‘I’m not talking about soccer.’ He hands her a sandwich. ‘I’m just talking about you. You’re an amazing person, and it’s important that you know that.’

She can _feel_ her ears going red. She’s never been good at handling compliments - probably because she’s received so few of them.

‘Thanks,’ she settles on. How can someone hand another person a compliment so casually?

‘You’re very welcome.’ He pulls out a basket and starts rifling through it. ‘Did you sort things out with your mom?’

Octavia snorts. ‘Maybe in an alternate reality where she isn’t a bitch.’

‘Well, I’m here to take your mind off of it. I’ve got a surprise for you.’ Lincoln stands and starts to walk away.

Octavia shoots up and the blanket slumps off her. ‘What do you mean a _surprise?_ ’

‘You know what a surprise is right?’ He says over his shoulder before disappearing.

She hitches the blanket back up and sits down. There’s never been a surprise in her life that wasn’t unpleasant.

She’s just starting to consider bailing on the whole evening when he comes back with a duffle bag.

‘Oh god,’ Octavia says, ‘did you bring me here to kill me? Is that for my body parts?’

He wrinkles his nose. ‘You’re so bleak sometimes. Close your eyes.’

Octavia reluctantly obeys. She can hear the sound of things being pulled from the bag, and he definitely gets up more than once. Her hands are sweating.

‘Okay, open.’

She sucks in a breath of the chilly air and it hitches in her throat. The old projector from the clubhouse is sitting in front of her opposite a pinned up sheet. She doesn’t think it even works anymore. Lincoln is grinning like an idiot.

‘What is this?’

He turns on a small generator and the projector kicks in to life. A spluttering image is cast on the sheet until it eventually settles.

‘It’s a movie night.’ He sits down beside her. ‘Give me some of that blanket.’

She can feel something building in her chest and she knows she’s going to cry.

‘You’re such a sucker.’ She says, tugging the blanket around him. He puts his arm around her shoulders. ‘Who even does this kind of stuff?’

‘You’d be surprised by what you can inspire.’

If he can tell that she’s blinking back tears, he’s being very polite about it.

‘How did you even get this?’ Lincoln reaches in to his pocket and drops a key in to her hand. ‘What the hell?’

He laughs. ‘What can I say? I’m sneaky.’

Her fingers trace over the key. ‘This thing’s ancient.’

‘It was hanging up. I spotted it and seized the opportunity. Turns out it opened a window and not a door, but I managed.’

‘Jesus, I’m dating a delinquent.’ She immediately freezes up. She didn’t mean to say that. Shit. She’s going to look like an idiot. _Why_ does she have to ruin everything good that ever happens to her?

Lincoln runs his hand over her back and she can feel her muscles relaxing. ‘I guess you are.’

She breathes out and leans in to him. She can barely feel the cold now.

‘Clarke would lose it if she knew you’d been in there. Or maybe not so much these days.’

‘What do you mean?’ He pops a grape in to his mouth. 

‘She’s so caught up with that Grounder captain I don’t think she’d notice if the clubhouse blew up.’

He sits up. ‘Lexa?’

‘Yeah, how’d you know?’

‘We’ve met. I did used to play soccer, remember?’

‘You wouldn’t know it from your form.’

He tugs the blanket off her.

‘Hey!’

Lincoln laughs and wraps her up again. They’re so close she can feel his breath on her cheek. He looks down at her and she probably couldn’t count all his eyelashes if she tried.

‘Hey,’ he says, as if he didn’t just cause her heart to leap in to her throat.

‘Hey,’ is all she can manage back.

He leans in, and she can feel herself pulling back. His hands feel firm and warm against her back. Her body relaxes, and she leans in to meet him.

Fireworks.

/

Bellamy picks up a rock and tosses it across the road. It hits a tin roof, makes a loud clanging sound, and then thuds against the dirt. Hardly satisfying.

He’d gone to Raven’s dorm, but neither her nor Clarke was there, and neither of them was answering their phones. Going for a walk seemed like a good idea. He definitely wasn’t expecting to see Raven and Wick during it.

Bellamy tosses another rock. It doesn’t hit anything and rolls across the pavement. He’s such a fucking moron; he sent her running straight back in to his arms. 

An old bus stop that probably hasn’t been cleaned in the last year sits before the driveway to the college, and he slumps on to it. What a waste. He doesn’t know what he was expecting from last night, but it wasn’t this. He didn’t even get a chance to talk to her about anything.

Bellamy groans and covers his face. He’s such an idiot. 

A car rolls past and the headlights momentarily blind him. He squints at it from between his fingers. It’s Wick’s. He’d recognise that beat up thing anywhere.

How can Raven love a guy with a car like that?

He reaches in to his jacket and pulls out his phone. Still no text from Raven. The light from the screen flickers as he rolls the phone in his hands. His feet tap rapidly against the gravel until he finally gives in.

It rings once. Twice. Three times. Maybe this isn’t such a good idea.

‘Hello?’

‘Hey, it’s me.’

‘Bellamy,’ he can hear Gina trying to shake the sleep from her voice, ‘are you alright?’

‘I need you tonight.’

The sound of blankets shifting can be heard before she responds. ‘I thought we weren’t going to do this anymore.’

He holds the phone against his forehead. He’s not even sure if he really wants this, he just doesn’t want to feel this way anymore.

‘Please,’ he says.

She sighs. ‘I’ll come, but just to talk.’

That’s what they always say.

‘Yeah of course, I’ll be home in half an hour.’

‘I’m on my way.’

The line goes dead. He shoves the phone back in to his pocket and stands. He hopes this isn’t a terrible idea.

 

The walk back takes a little longer than expected. A group of media students are filming something and he has to detour around them. The fields are pitch black except for a soft orange light coming from the track. He squints against the darkness, who’s out this late? He decides he’d better investigate.

It only takes him a few minutes to reach the edge of the field. He climbs over the barrier with ease, the metal freezing against his bare hands. Gloves don’t really go with this jacket.

His cheeks flush when he realises it’s a couple making out. Hard. Looks like everyone’s having a good time tonight except him.

The Tartan Track squeaks underneath his shoes as he turns to leave, and that’s when he sees it. His little sister’s face lit up in that soft light.

Bellamy bolts for the centre of the field. ‘O!’ He yells.

She leaps up, startled, and runs to meet him. ‘Bellamy, what are you doing here?’ He barrels past her towards the man.

‘Hey,’ the guy says, raising his hands, ‘I’m guessing you’re the big brother, my –‘ before he can even finish, Bellamy is swinging.

He ducks and avoids the blow, which just makes Bellamy angrier.

‘Bellamy, stop it!’ Octavia tugs at his arm but he shrugs her off. ‘You’re being ridiculous!’

He spins to face her. ‘What the hell is this?’

‘It’s none of your god damn business!’

‘Hey, everything’s cool man, my name’s Lincoln.’

Bellamy squints at him. ‘Lincoln? You’ve gotta be fucking kidding me. Do you even know who this is?’

Octavia looks between them. ‘Of course I do.’

He turns to face Lincoln. ‘Does she?’

Lincoln’s face sinks. Octavia is shaking her head. ‘What the hell is going on?’

‘Octavia, I can explain,’ Lincoln starts moving toward her, but Bellamy steps in his way.

‘This is the son of the Grounders’ coach.’

Octavia moves aside so she can see him properly. ‘Lincoln, what the hell is he talking about?’

‘Listen, I was going to tell you. I was going to tell you tonight.’ He turns to Bellamy. ‘It’s not what you think.’

‘No, I think that’s exactly what it is. How long has this guy been sniffing around you, O? Since you started playing?’

‘That’s not what this is!’ Lincoln interjects. ‘This has nothing to do with soccer, I don’t give a shit about soccer.’

Bellamy’s attention moves to the projector and his face darkens. ‘You took him in to the clubhouse?’

Octavia looks completely lost. ‘Once,’ is all she manages to say.

Bellamy moves past them to the duffle bag and tips it upside down. 

‘Wait!’ Lincoln yells, but he’s too late.

Training tapes tumble out of the bag and on to the grass.

‘It’s not what you think, I promise!’ Lincoln moves towards Octavia, but she’s too quick for him. She catches his ankle and hurls him to the ground. He lands on his back and she steps on to his chest.

‘You used me?’ She presses her foot down harder. Bellamy makes no move to stop her. ‘You fucking _asshole_ , how could you?’

Lincoln tries to rise, but she presses down harder. She looks completely humiliated and Bellamy’s heart is breaking for her.

‘You’re nothing,’ Octavia turns and marches away, and he knows it’s because she’s crying.

Bellamy leans down before following her. ‘You come near her again, I’ll blind you.’

By the time he reaches the end of the track, Octavia is gone. He glances back once. Lincoln still hasn’t risen from the ground.

Tonight seems to be leaving a trail of broken hearts in its wake. 

/

It only took an hour and a half for the cocktails to turn in to straight spirits. They’re the only people left in the restaurant now, and the fire is dying. Lexa had the common sense to bring a coat; unfortunately Clarke didn’t even consider the thought. She’s freezing. She slams another glass down on to the table.

‘You fucking liar,’ she says, ‘there’s no way that’s true.’

Lexa is leaning back in her chair laughing. ‘I swear on my life! Dangling in the wind!’

They both roar with laughter. Clarke’s stomach is beginning to hurt; she’s never laughed this hard in her life. One of the staff members is eyeing her from the bar but she ignores them.

‘God, what I would give to have seen that. Bet it matches his ego.’

‘Absolutely, but you didn’t hear that from me.’ Lexa spills more liquor on to the table than in her glass.

‘God, you’re hopeless, let me do it.’ Clarke takes the bottle from her hand and pours it. She’s probably put her bank account in to the negatives tonight, but right now she doesn’t care. She’s having too much fun.

‘On second thought, I’d better have that one.’ Clarke swipes the glass from Lexa’s hand and downs the liquid. You know you’ve had too much when it doesn’t burn anymore.

‘Hey! I’m fine.’

Clarke shakes her head. ‘You’re six drinks behind me and in much worse shape.’

Lexa sits up straight. ‘Clarke, I can assure you I am perfectly capable of monitoring my own alcohol intake.’

‘You’re not even looking in my eyes!’

Lexa is staring at her mouth. That’s it - she’s cut off.

‘Come on, captain. Let’s get you in to a cab.’

Lexa rubs her hands over her face. ‘How much have we had to drink? I’m parked around the corner.’

‘We’ve had just enough to drive ourselves in to a tree, come on.’ She reaches for her hand and Lexa takes it. She’s surprisingly warm.

‘Clarke, it’s going to cost a fortune to get home tonight.’

Clarke frowns. Why didn’t she think of this before drinking half of this place’s alcohol?

‘We’ll spend the night here.’ Lexa tucks in her chair.

‘Uh, I can’t really afford a hotel.’

‘On me, I insist.’

Clarke’s never been the kind of girl to turn down anything that’s free. In middle school she once ate a pie that her friend dropped on the ground.

‘Well, if you insist.’

As soon as they step out of the door, Clarke is enveloped by the cold.

‘Jesus Christ, when did the blizzard start?’

‘Come on, I’ve stayed here before. There’s somewhere nice right around the corner.’ 

Clarke is visibly shuddering. A summer dress has to be the dumbest idea she’s had. This week.

Lexa snakes her arm around her shoulders and tugs her against her side. Her body heat is making Clarke’s skin burn. She exhales a rattly breath.

‘We’re almost there,’ Lexa assures her.

She wasn’t even thinking about the cold.

 

Clarke wanders around the hotel room. It’s smaller than she was expecting, but very nice. Lexa is still downstairs arguing with the receptionist. Apparently they’re hosting a business convention and all the rooms are booked out. It took twenty minutes of stern words for Lexa to get them in here. It would have been longer but Clarke snatched the room key and told her she’d settle for a janitor’s closet if it meant she could crawl somewhere warm. She’s rifling through the mini bar when Lexa finally enters the room.

‘Up to your standards, your highness?’ Clarke asks, inspecting a tiny bottle of vodka.

‘It will have to do I’m afraid.’

‘Come on, it’s beautiful! Look at this weird puffy thing.’

‘It’s a pouffe.’

‘Well I could probably pay my tuition with it.’

Lexa shrugs out of her coat and starts taking her shoes off.

Clarke abandons the fridge. ‘So what side do you want?’

A leather boot rolls across the floor. ‘Excuse me?’

‘I’m a right side of the bed girl myself, but seeing as you’re paying, you can choose.’

Lexa glances around the room and looks alarmed. ‘You won’t take the couch?’

Funny how Lexa’s idea of a couch is _actually_ some kind of fancy flat thing that looks like it might rupture Clarke’s spine if she lies down on it.

‘I’m not a couch kind of girl.’ Clarke slips her dress over her head, kicks off her shoes, and climbs underneath the covers. ‘You took too long, you’re sleeping on the left.’

Lexa’s cheeks are bright red. ‘You know they do supply robes, would you like me to get you one?’

Clarke snorts. ‘I’m not sleeping in a robe. Besides, I’ll be warm enough once you’re under here too, so could you hurry up?’

Her whole body is buzzing from the alcohol and the sheets feel so soft, she might drop off to sleep before Lexa even gets in to bed.

Lexa crosses to the wardrobe and takes out an enormous fluffy robe that she attempts to wrap around herself.

‘Don’t be ridiculous! Just sleep in your underwear like a normal person.’ Clarke sits up and leans against the bedhead. ‘Stop being so coy.’

The robe drops to the ground. Lexa straightens her posture. ‘Fine.’ She starts making her way to the bathroom.

‘Relax, Captain Serious. I’ve seen plenty of girls in their underwear. You’re nothing special. Just hurry up, would you? I’m freezing my ass off.’

Lexa narrows her eyes and turns away from her. ‘I want that extra pillow,’ she says over her shoulder.

‘Not a chance.’ Clarke nestles in to the bed and closes her eyes. She can hear the sound of Lexa’s skirt being unzipped, and despite her better judgement, she opens one eye.

The other one shoots open when she sees the underwear Lexa has on. She definitely didn’t expect her to own anything that… _lacy_. And red. She wonders if Lexa knows what red underwear means.

She slips the skirt down her legs and steps out of it. Clarke’s eyes run up from her ankles, past her calves, along her thighs and stop at her butt. Damn, it looks good. Why is she always hiding it underneath her clothing?

She can tell Lexa is craning her neck and she quickly shuts her eyes again, not opening them until she can hear the rustle of Lexa’s shirt. She tugs it over her head with ease, and for the first time, Clarke sees the extent of the tattoo always peeking above her neckline. It’s beautiful and intricate, and she has no idea what it means. She’s considering asking about it when Lexa turns and meets her gaze. Clarke doesn’t shy away, and neither does Lexa. They’re just looking at each other.

‘I like your tattoo,’ she finally says, ‘it’s beautiful.’

She thinks she can see a hint of a smile playing on Lexa’s lips. ‘Thank you, Clarke.’ She strides over to the bed on those long legs and slides in beside her. Their legs brush against each other, and Clarke can feel how cold she is.

‘Jesus, Lexa, you’re freezing.’

‘I’m sorry, I’ll be warmed up momentarily.’

‘Don’t be an idiot.’ Clarke gingerly places a hand on Lexa’s side. She stiffens at first, but then relaxes in to her touch. She can feel her warmth being passed to Lexa’s skin.

‘I thought you said you were freezing.’

‘I was.’ Clarke grins because she knows Lexa can’t see her face. She slides her arm around a little further, and her fingertips brush against the fabric of Lexa’s bra. She feels her body twitch.

‘Sorry,’ she whispers.

Lexa swallows. ‘It’s fine.’

After a moment, Clarke moves her body a little closer so that they’re pressed together. Lexa shifts her weight and Clarke’s heart sends a jolt that goes to the tip of her toes. She wonders if Lexa can hear how hard her pulse is throbbing.

‘Clarke.’ Lexa’s tongue clicks when she annunciates her name. Clarke never noticed that until just now. ‘Would you mind getting the lamp?’

‘Right, uh, sure.’ Clarke slides away from her and leans over to click the light off. It’s a full moon, and the soft blue light is flooding the room. Lexa’s skin is glowing from it. Clarke shakes her head. She can get that idea out of her head right now.

She settles back under the covers, this time away from Lexa, but she shuffles back to meet her. Clarke takes this as a sign that it’s okay to keep touching her, so she does. Lexa exhales. Clarke tries to keep her breathing steady.

There’s so much adrenaline pumping through her body, she doesn’t think it will be possible for her to sleep tonight.

Lexa sits up suddenly.

Clarke snatches her hand away. ‘Are you alright?’

‘Yes, I’m fine. I’m just a little… uncomfortable.’

‘Oh, I’m sorry.’ Clarke sits up too. ‘Would you like me to sleep on the couch?’

‘No, no, that’s not what I mean.’ She looks nervous, and reaches around behind her back. ‘Would it bother you?’

Clarke frowns until she realises what she’s talking about; she wants to take off her bra. That’s _definitely_ going to bother her.

‘Not at all, I don’t usually sleep in one either.’

Lexa nods, turns, and unclips her bra. The fabric slips from her fingers to the ground and she lies back down beneath the covers.

Clarke sits still for a moment, unsure of what to do. Hell, she might as well just do it. She unclasps her own bra and tosses it across the room. 

The covers rustle loudly as she slips back beneath them, this time when she leaves a space between them, Lexa doesn’t move back. It would probably be too weird now.

After a few minutes, Lexa turns to face her, and Clarke can hear her own heart beating in her ears.

She doesn’t say anything at first; she just looks at her. Clarke can barely make her eyes out in this light, but she thinks she’s looking at her face.

Lexa seems to be wrestling with something before she speaks. ‘Can I tell you something?’ She asks.

She hopes her mouth isn’t too dry to respond. ‘Sure.’

Clarke feels a warm hand against her arm.

‘I think you looked beautiful tonight.’

The alcohol is still swimming in her brain. It’s clouding her judgement.

‘So did you.’

Lexa’s hand starts moving up her body, and Clarke is sure that Lexa can feel her quivering beneath it.

‘I think I want to do something stupid,’ Lexa whispers.

She sucks in the cold air. ‘Then do it.’

Lexa doesn’t rush forward; she eases her way over. Clarke’s never felt so vulnerable in her life. She had to admit she’s wondered what those lips would feel like.

They’re soft, and warm, and they don’t land on her mouth. Lexa brushes them against the bottom of her chin, and Clarke shivers. Lexa smiles.

‘Don’t look so pleased with yourself.’ Clarke says, but it comes out a lot breathier than she’d meant it to.

Lexa doesn’t respond; she just runs her lips against her jaw and down to her neck. She lets her body relax in to it. After a moment, Lexa’s bottom lip is dragging across her skin towards her mouth, and Clarke is terrified.

‘Are you alright?’ Lexa whispers. Clarke nods, and their lips meet.

She’s very delicate, and much more tender than she anticipated. They’re just pressing together at this point, but Clarke’s skin is humming. She opens her mouth to allow Lexa to deepen the kiss, and she does. It’s intimate and sexy and overwhelming.

Lexa is starting to shift on top of her, and her hands slide along her arms and grasp her wrists. She didn’t even know she liked that, but it’s definitely working for her. 

They’re gasping in to each other’s mouths at this point, and one of Lexa’s hands is on her shoulder, then her chest, over her breasts, and down her stomach. It slips beneath her underwear. She can feel how wet she is, and apparently Lexa can too, because her breath hitches. Her fingers are moving slowly, and Clarke can’t believe how much she wants this. Her whole body is shaking. Lexa’s grip on her wrist loosens, and she takes it as an opportunity to flip her. Lexa falls on to her back and laughs. ‘Impressive,’ she says.

Clarke grins. ‘I’m not just the god of soccer.’ 

Lexa bites her bottom lip, and Clarke slides both of her hands down her hips. Lexa lifts them to let her slide her underwear off. She doesn’t touch her, not yet; she wants to work her up more first.

She kisses her again, this time licking the roof of her mouth, and Lexa moans in to her. Looks like she found a soft spot. She pulls back from her mouth, leans in, and runs her tongue all the way down to her clavicle. Lexa’s hips are twitching, but Clarke doesn’t give in. She kisses along her collarbone, and then drags her lip to her nipple. Lexa grips the headboard when Clarke runs her tongue over it. She takes her time before switching to the other one, and replaces her tongue with her palm. By this point, Lexa has turned her face in to the pillow, and her eyes are tightly shut. 

Clarke takes one of Lexa’s hands, and places it between her own legs. Lexa tilts her head back when it makes contact, moaning something that Clarke can’t hear. It doesn’t matter; she knows what she wants.

She moves away from Lexa’s hand, and throws the covers from the bed. It’s freezing, but she doesn’t care. Lexa’s skin is covered in gooseflesh.

Clarke positions herself between her legs, pushing them slightly apart, and kisses the inside of her thigh. Lexa lifts her head to watch her, and it spurs her on. She can feel the heat from her body, can practically feel the pulse between her legs, but still takes her time. She wants her at breaking point.

Her tongue comes close, but concentrates just a little too far away from where Lexa wants it. She feels those slender fingers slide through her hair, but she isn’t being guided. She takes this as a good sign.

‘Please.’ Lexa finally says. Clarke grins. That’s what she was waiting for.

She presses her tongue against her, and Lexa arches her body up. Clarke rides with the movement, maintaining her position. She starts moving her tongue in long strides, and Lexa’s moans are coming from deep in her throat. She grips the back of Lexa’s thighs and pulls herself in closer. She’s surrounded by her, and it’s so fucking hot she can barely stand it.

Lexa is panting her name now, all articulation gone, just sighing it out. Clarke is melting inside. She’s concentrating on the exact spot Lexa’s been craving, and her whole body is responding to it. Clarkes hands slide up her body and palm over her breasts. Lexa’s pants are growing louder and longer until, suddenly, they hitch in her throat. Clarke’s mouth is flushed with a sweet taste, and she knows she’s done.

She rolls to the side, panting, chest heaving. Her hands are shaking, she’s ready to finish herself off at this point. Lexa’s hands scrape at her shoulders and Clarke slides herself back up so that they’re face to face. Lexa kisses her, tasting herself on her tongue. Clarke is absolutely _dying_. After her breathing steadies, Lexa climbs on top of her, leans back, and begins tying her hair up.

Clarke can’t stop herself from grinning.

/

The knocking at the door wakes Bellamy up. His mouth is dry and he’s not even sure what day it is. Gina is curled up beside him in one of his sweaters. Neither of them was expecting her to spend the night.

For once, they didn’t even sleep together. He couldn’t bring himself to do it. He just kept thinking about Raven. Her face, the way she laughs, the way she raises her eyebrows when she’s being sarcastic. Last night made it official, he’s an absolute goner.

Too bad she’s back with Wick. The thought of it rises in his throat like bile.

Three more knocks. ‘Give it a rest, I’m coming.’ He lifts the blanket up to Gina’s chin. She looks peaceful.

He doesn’t bother to put a shirt on before opening it, but he wishes he had.

It’s Raven.

‘Freckles.’ She’s grinning. ‘I’ve got something important to talk to you about.’

His heart sinks to his stomach. He doesn’t want to hear any of this. If she’s come to gush about Wick he might just vomit.

She tries to edge past him but he blocks her off.

‘Geez Blake, what’s up your ass this morning?’

‘What did you want to talk to me about?’

She blushes. He doesn’t think he’s ever seen Raven blush in his life. It makes him feel sick to know why it’s happening. ‘I’m not gonna talk about it out here, move your ass and let me in.’ 

She nudges past him but freezes when Gina comes in to view. ‘Oh,’ is all she manages.

He knows what she’s thinking, and he should correct her.

But he decides in that moment that he wants to hurt her.

‘Can we do this later? Because I’m kind of busy.’

Raven bites her lip. ‘Don’t even worry about it.’ And just like that, she’s gone.

Bellamy rests his head against the doorframe. What a fucking disaster.


End file.
